Record Tides Flood Southern California, Trap Driver in Mill Valley
WHO:
ABC7 Los Angeles - Long Beach resident Annie Koury said water suddenly entered her car and she closed its door.
Los Angeles Times - UC Agricultural and Natural Resources climate scientist Daniel Swain said California’s coastal waters were at record-warm levels for the time of year, from about the Farallon Islands to Baja California.
Los Angeles Times - NASA climate scientist Josh Willis called the El Niño “El Niño Macho” and said it could be similar to or bigger than the 1997 event.
Los Angeles Times - Long Beach resident Nancy Pinckert said seawater was leaking through the base of a Naples seawall and expressed concern that the November and December king tides “will breach the seawalls for the first time ever.”
Los Angeles Times - Newport Beach spokesperson Georgia Rios said residents responded to the city’s preparations; about 25,000 sandbags were distributed over the weekend.
Los Angeles Times - Chandler Price, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in San Diego, said La Jolla’s sea level was near its station record.
Los Angeles Times - The National Weather Service issued coastal flood warnings and advisories for Southern California counties.
KTVU - A driver became trapped in a flooded car in Mill Valley and was rescued by a tow truck.
KTVU - Caltrans closed Miller Avenue in Mill Valley; paddleboarders were seen on the flooded road.
WHAT:
ABC7 Los Angeles - Newport Beach’s Monday high tide reached about 8.3 feet, more than a foot above prediction.
ABC7 Los Angeles - The National Weather Service said records at San Pedro date to 1924.
Los Angeles Times - At Scripps Pier, the ocean surface temperature reached about 77 degrees in early August; the average maximum is about 70 degrees. On Thursday, it was about 73 degrees, compared with an average of 66 degrees for that time of year.
Los Angeles Times - The January 1983 historic storm damaged piers along the California coast during a strong El Niño and very high tides.
ABC7 Los Angeles - Newport Beach’s Monday morning high tide arrived around 9 a.m. and was more than a foot higher than predicted; Tuesday’s tide was expected to reach 8.5 feet.
ABC7 Los Angeles - Forecast high tides along the Los Angeles County coastline ranged from 7.5 to 8 feet.
ABC7 Los Angeles - Forecasters said tides were running 1 to 1.7 feet above astronomical predictions in Orange County and roughly 1 to 1.5 feet above predictions along the Los Angeles County coastline.
ABC7 Los Angeles - More significant flooding and damage were possible where sandy beaches were absent or previous high tides had already caused problems.
Los Angeles Times - California seawater levels have risen about 1 foot over the past 125 years.
Los Angeles Times - Sea-surface temperatures off California, Baja California and across a wide area of the eastern Pacific were at record highs in data dating to 1982.
Los Angeles Times - At Scripps Pier, the sea-surface temperature was 73.8 degrees, 9.1 degrees above the calendar-day average of 64.7 degrees.
Los Angeles Times - David Gomberg of the National Weather Service in Oxnard said San Pedro’s 8.02-foot reading was 1.42 feet above the level predicted from the positions of the moon, Earth and sun, due to warmer water, a Kelvin wave and an exceptionally high astronomical tide.
ABC7 Los Angeles - A fully restored 1968 Volkswagen Beetle was flooded inside a garage below sea level in Long Beach.
ABC7 Los Angeles - Long Beach homes had been red-tagged in recent weeks because of flooding and damage from high surf and high tides.
ABC7 Los Angeles - The National Weather Service said Monday through Wednesday could produce the highest tides on record.
ABC7 Los Angeles - Huntington Beach announced a precautionary closure of Pacific Coast Highway between Warner Avenue and Anderson Street from 8 a.m. to noon tomorrow.
Los Angeles Times - The Los Angeles Harbor record high is 7.92 feet; projected levels could reach 8.1 feet and 8 feet on Tuesday and Wednesday, respectively. Sunday’s preliminary high was 7.71 feet.
Los Angeles Times - Newport Beach’s seawater level reached 8 feet on Sunday; officials projected it could reach 8.5 feet on Tuesday at 9:50 a.m. and Wednesday at 10:28 a.m.
Los Angeles Times - Total water levels in Los Angeles, Orange and San Diego counties could exceed 8 feet above the baseline, defined as the average daily lowest water level observed between 1983 and 2001.
Los Angeles Times - La Jolla’s seawater level reached 7.66 feet on Sunday.
Los Angeles Times - Scientists said unusually extreme king tides are expected around Thanksgiving, Christmas and Martin Luther King Jr. Day; storms during those events could further increase coastal-flooding risk.
Los Angeles Times - High tides flooded streets and businesses from Newport Beach to Long Beach. Newport Harbor water covered streets on the Balboa Peninsula and flooded some businesses in the Balboa Fun Zone; flooding was also reported at Bayshore Beach, Naples and the Long Beach Peninsula.
Los Angeles Times - The San Pedro tide gauge reached 8.02 feet, breaking the previous record of 7.93 feet. La Jolla’s sea level reached 7.75 feet, close to its 7.81-foot record.
Los Angeles Times - Newport Beach seawater reached 8.3 feet, nearly 2 feet above the level expected from high tide alone. The city reported no significant widespread damage.
KTVU - Floodwater rose midway up the trapped driver’s car. He initially tried to get out, then waited for a tow truck to lay down a ramp; stranded cars were also seen.
KTVU - Forecasters said ocean levels had run as much as 22 inches above predicted levels, raising coastal-flooding and beach-erosion risks.
WHERE:
Los Angeles Times - High tide flooded part of Pacific Coast Highway in Sunset Beach.
ABC7 Los Angeles - Water came into the Balboa Fun Zone from the bay side of the peninsula; ocean-side sand berms kept additional water out.
ABC7 Los Angeles - Huntington Beach’s sand and sandbags were available at City Corporate Yard, 17371 Gothard Street; Edison Community Center, 21377 Magnolia Street; and Warner Fire Station, 3831 Warner Avenue.
ABC7 Los Angeles - In Long Beach, water crossed the sand berms at Bayshore Beach and moved over 54th Place toward waterfront homes and businesses, including Grill ’Em All.
ABC7 Los Angeles - Huntington Beach offered sand and sandbags at its City Corporate Yard, Edison Community Center and Warner Fire Station.
Los Angeles Times - Flooding affected Newport Beach, Long Beach, San Pedro and La Jolla; Orange and San Diego counties faced the highest coastal-flooding risk.
KTVU - Miller Avenue in Mill Valley, Marin County, was closed after Pacific high-tide flooding reached residential areas.
WHEN:
Los Angeles Times - The National Weather Service warning for Orange and San Diego counties was set to last through Thursday afternoon; a coastal flood advisory covered Los Angeles, Ventura, Santa Barbara and San Luis Obispo counties.
KTVU - The article’s image caption dates the Mill Valley car incident to October 26, 2026.
WHY:
Los Angeles Times - Reinhard Flick said unusually warm water threatens birds and plankton if the conditions persist.
Los Angeles Times - Scientists said California coastal waters were about 5 to 9 degrees Fahrenheit warmer than average; Reinhard Flick said the unusual warmth was “bad for the ecology.”
Los Angeles Times - A Kelvin wave moving about 6 mph carries warm water from the equatorial Pacific up and down the Americas’ coast; its arrival, combined with swells from Tropical Storm Rachel, contributed to earlier flooding.
Los Angeles Times - Scientists attributed elevated sea levels to record-hot ocean temperatures, human-caused climate change, an El Niño-fueled Kelvin wave and a marine heat wave unrelated to El Niño.
Los Angeles Times - Reinhard Flick of Scripps Institution of Oceanography at UC San Diego said the lunar node and lunar perigee tidal cycles contribute to exceptionally extreme king tides.
Los Angeles Times - Unusually high water levels were attributed to record-hot ocean temperatures, El Niño, a marine heat wave, active eastern Pacific hurricane conditions and astronomical alignments affecting tides.
KTVU - High tides from the Pacific Ocean caused flooding in Mill Valley.
HOW:
Los Angeles Times - UC San Diego’s Mark Merrifield had warned months earlier that the El Niño could bring “likely the highest sea levels ever recorded on the California coast” and that Southern California coastal flooding was likely to be a major winter-season issue.
Los Angeles Times - A Long Beach resident recorded video of water leaking through the base of a seawall in Naples.
Los Angeles Times - Newport Beach crews pumped out knee-high water and reinforced sandbags; officials had moved sand, installed sandbags and urged residents to move cars to higher ground and protect property.
Los Angeles Times - The San Pedro record was measured at 8.02 feet; La Jolla’s level was 7.75 feet. Scientists said unusually warm ocean water elevated sea levels by 1.25 to 1.8 feet beyond the influence of the moon, Earth and sun.
KTVU - The trapped driver escaped with help from a tow-truck ramp. Low-lying streets, parking lots, bike paths and harbor walkways were identified as especially vulnerable.
(UPDATED October 28, 2026 02:00 UTC)
Exceptionally high tides flooded streets and businesses across coastal Southern California, with Newport Beach’s water level reaching 8.3 feet and San Pedro breaking its tide-gauge record. The National Weather Service issued coastal flood warnings and advisories, while residents reported seawater seeping through a Naples seawall and a driver was rescued from a flooded car in Mill Valley. Scientists say record-warm ocean water is contributing to elevated sea levels, and unusually extreme king tides are expected around Thanksgiving, Christmas and Martin Luther King Jr. Day, with storms potentially worsening coastal flooding.
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(UPDATED October 28, 2026 00:08 UTC)
Exceptionally high tides flooded streets and businesses from Newport Beach to Long Beach, while San Pedro’s tide gauge set a record and coastal flood warnings covered parts of Southern California. The water rose well above predictions amid record-warm coastal seas, with scientists pointing to a combination of ocean heat, a Kelvin wave, El Niño and long-term sea-level rise. Officials prepared for more flooding as tides continued to climb, and Huntington Beach announced Pacific Coast Highway would close between Warner Avenue and Anderson Street from 8 a.m. to noon tomorrow.
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(UPDATED October 27, 2026 19:03 UTC)
Record-high tides and unusually warm Pacific waters are flooding California’s coast, with water covering streets and businesses from Newport Beach to Long Beach, while San Pedro’s tide gauge set a new record at 8.02 feet. Flooding also closed Miller Avenue in Mill Valley, where a driver trapped in a car was rescued, and coastal flood warnings and advisories remain in effect across Southern California. Scientists attribute the elevated water to record ocean warmth, El Niño, a marine heat wave and unusually high astronomical tides, with the National Weather Service warning that the highest tides on record could occur Monday through Wednesday.
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(UPDATED October 27, 2026 13:22 UTC)
Exceptionally high tides flooded coastal communities from Newport Beach to Long Beach and San Pedro, where the tide gauge set a record, while La Jolla’s sea level neared its station record. Floodwater covered streets and businesses, reached homes in Long Beach, and trapped a driver in a car in Mill Valley, who was rescued with help from a tow truck. Officials distributed sandbags and issued coastal flood warnings as forecasters projected further extreme tides, driven by unusually warm ocean water and natural tidal cycles.
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(UPDATED October 27, 2026 12:02 UTC)
Unusually high tides flooded coastal communities from Newport Beach to Long Beach and San Pedro, where the tide gauge set a record, while sea levels in La Jolla approached its record. In Newport Beach, seawater reached 8.3 feet, streets and businesses flooded, and crews pumped out water as residents prepared with about 25,000 sandbags; in Mill Valley, a driver trapped in a flooded car was rescued by tow truck. Coastal flood warnings and advisories covered parts of Southern California, with officials projecting more high water and scientists citing unusually warm oceans, climate change, El Niño and tidal cycles as contributing factors.
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(UPDATED October 27, 2026 07:18 UTC)
Unusually high tides flooded streets and businesses from Newport Beach to Long Beach, while coastal flooding also reached Mill Valley, where a driver trapped in a car was rescued with a tow-truck ramp. The San Pedro tide gauge set a record at 8.02 feet, and La Jolla’s sea level neared its station record as officials warned of flooding and beach erosion along the Southern California coast. Newport Beach distributed about 25,000 sandbags and crews pumped out water, while forecasters attributed the elevated ocean levels to unusually warm waters and several factors affecting tides.