The ocean breached the Seal Beach winter sand berm over the weekend, leaving gouges in the berm. The First Street parking lot was flooded near the Beach House restaurant. A hole in the First Street parking lot was surrounded by orange cones on Sunday.
Once the water had receded, and been removed by at least one water pump, visitors climbed to the top of the berm to watch the waves pound the beach.
City officials had expected the waves. The pier was closed Thursday, Dec. 28, as a result.
The pier was closed “for safety reasons due to high surf conditions,” wrote City Manager Jill Ingram in a Dec. 28 text.
“The Marine Safety Department is monitoring the first noteworthy winter swell that is forecast to bring surf into Seal Beach Thursday 12/12 through Saturday 12/30,” wrote Seal Beach Police Lt. Julia Clasby.
At the time, Clasby wrote that the Marine Safety Department had added Lifeguards to the schedule.
“With the combination of schools being out this week and the buzz that gets created in the surf community, crowds of surfers and beachgoers have descended into Seal Beach,” Clasby wrote on Dec. 28.
“When the waves reached the top of the pier, the pier was closed for the safety of the spectators,” Clasby wrote.
That same day, the SBPD posted a notice on Facebook announcing the pier closure with a photo of waves crashing the pier and the words, “The pier is closed until further notice due to the ocean reminding us just how small we really are.”
On Saturday morning, Dec. 30, the ocean waves overwhelmed the berm at one end of the beach, leaving slippery foam on the boardwalk, while at the other end of the beach the waves reached beyond the sand and flooded the First Street parking lot. City Hall was closed during the holidays until reopening on Jan. 2, 2024. The Sun has emailed a request for more information from the city.
