King tides and minor flooding expected to last through Saturday in Newport Beach
Higher-than-normal tides caused minor flooding on the Balboa Peninsula in Newport Beach Wednesday night.
City officials are keeping an eye on additional king tides, which are anticipated to reach more than 8 feet and last through Saturday.
However, officials don’t anticipate significant flooding.
Shortly after 6 p.m. Wednesday, sea water began to flow onto 26th and 38th streets and near the Fun Zone.
City crews responded by pumping water back into the ocean, said Newport Beach’s acting utilities director, Steffen Catron.
Catron said the water on 38th Street — an area that doesn’t typically flood — was the result of a tide gate valve that wasn’t completely closed and allowed ocean water to seep through. Crews repaired the valve Wednesday night.
No homes were damaged.
The National Weather Service predicted that high tide on Wednesday would peak at 6.9 feet around 8:30 p.m. at the entrance to Newport Harbor.
However, Catron said the tide that rolled in was about a foot higher than predicted.
National Weather Service forecasters predicted high tide to reach 7.08 feet shortly after 9 p.m. Thursday and 7.03 feet shortly after 10 p.m. Friday.
Catron said officials are anticipating the tide will be about a foot higher than projected, but don’t expect notable flooding.
Officials sandbagged certain areas of the peninsula, including 26th Street, to keep the area dry over the next several days.
“Even with the higher tide tonight we shouldn’t have any problems,” Catron said.
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