Countywide
Waves as high as 12 feet were expected to begin pounding western-facing beaches late Sunday night as the after-effects of a storm 3,000 miles away began to reach Southern California.
The National Weather Service posted a heavy surf advisory and forecast waves averaging 6 to 9 feet, with occasional sets as high as 12 feet, through Tuesday.
The Weather Service urged coastal property owners to protect exposed structures and to expect some flooding in low-lying areas. Officials warned that swimming, surfing and viewing the surf from unprotected areas is extremely dangerous.
“You might be sitting there talking to somebody and a heavy wave will come in and get you that you couldn’t anticipate,” said Wally Cegiel, forecaster for the National Weather Service at Lindbergh Field.
Lifeguards will monitor the size of the surf and may close the Ocean Beach pier and the north and south jetties at the Mission Bay channel entrance if it appears the waves are too high, said Harbor Patrol officer Sherry Peter.
The surf will combine with a high tide of about six feet at 7:08 a.m. today and at 7:40 a.m. Tuesday.
The heavy surf is from an intense storm Thursday that generated large ocean swells about 3,000 miles west of Los Angeles.
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