Massive waves from Marie flooded streets in Long Beach on Sunday, pushing water into blocks near 67th Place and Ocean Boulevard and forcing lifeguards to evacuate people from the boardwalk. Marie stayed offshore, but the surf still hit the shoreline hard enough to damage property and leave cleanup work behind.
Jen, a Long Beach peninsula neighbor, said the flooding started around 2 p.m. and that sand clogged the storm drains. “We have had, all day, it's been pretty intense. From 2 p.m. on, the swells got really large, and then the drains were either blocked or not working,” she said near 67th Place and Ocean Boulevard. “And then it overflows into our block and into a few of the other blocks and into our houses.”
67th Place and Ocean Boulevard
The flooded area sat at the lowest point on the peninsula, according to Evelina Mardirossian, who said the city had come out and looked at it. She also said, “I feel violated, but I can't be violated, because it's not by a person - it's nature. I tell my grandchildren that I'm sad that us humans have created this.”
Cole Hill said the flooding brought more than standing water. “There's power shortages going on, so some people are getting shocked in there, so we're having to turn off all the power. There's tiles being ripped off the floor, furniture being moved, obviously there's electronics being damaged,” he said as residents dealt with the damage.
Long Beach boardwalk damage
Video from the scene showed wood on the boardwalk splintered from the force of the waves, and Ashley Brown said boards were being thrown up high. “Everything that it's throwing up at you with every wave is something that somebody is getting hit with, or a board that is coming off the boardwalk that is going up 10 feet in the air,” she said.
The surf also washed away the eight-foot berms built along the shore, leaving the beach edge exposed to more water movement. Marie was downgraded from a hurricane to a tropical cyclone on Sunday night, but officials said the dangerous surf would likely continue for the next few days, and beachgoers were urged to stay away from the water for the rest of Labor Day weekend.
For residents near the flooded blocks, the immediate concern is keeping people out of the waterlogged areas and away from damaged boards, electrical issues, and shifting surf until the shoreline settles.
