Tide’s Up : No Damage Seen for Beach Structures Barring a Storm

Some Orange County beach dwellers scrambled Friday to protect their homes against an expected high tide this weekend, but oceanographers and meteorologists predicted that without a major storm, the rising sea will cause little, if any, damage.

The cyclical high and low tides guided by the moon will be particularly interesting to scientists, however, as they watch an unusual alignment of moon, Earth and sun that will create this year’s highest tide.

Weather watchers said that Sunday’s 7-foot high tide in Orange County and the minus 1.7-foot low tide--the third lowest for 1990--are not likely to create any local flooding or damage to property unless a major Pacific storm develops unexpectedly.

Friday’s warm, sunny skies that invited beachcombers to the ocean gave no hint that the weather will worsen over the weekend. The waves were running about 2 feet and the forecast called for clear days with a high in the low 70s on Sunday.

“Right now, with the surf conditions and wind conditions like this, there will be absolutely no problem,” said Lt. John Blauer, a marine safety officer for Newport Beach.

The highest recorded tide of 8 feet occurred in the Los Angeles area on Jan. 27, 1983, when a storm with accompanying high winds battered the coastline and caused severe damage to homes and businesses.

High tides normally run in the 6-foot range, officials said, and the tidal levels for Orange County are generally three-tenths of a foot lower than for those in the Los Angeles area.

Oceanographers say the moon, as it aligns with the sun, will be closer to Earth than at any other time of the month. That, combined with other factors that affect the moon’s gravitational pull on the Earth and centrifugal force, will produce the extreme high tides.

The phenomena will occur again on Dec. 31, officials say, when the high tide will equal Sunday’s level, and the low tide will match this year’s record of a minus 1.9 feet set on May 25.

In anticipation of the high tides Friday, city and county officials made minor preparations; however, some residents were taking no chances.

Officials for the Orange County Environmental Management Agency planned to put two extra park rangers on duty Sunday to watch the county’s beaches. They will also station a public works employee at Sunset Beach, where high tides have caused problems before. Trash cans and other portable objects were being removed just to be on the safe side.

In Newport Beach, about two dozen residents picked up sandbags from the city’s storage center in preparation for a possible storm.

At Capistrano Beach--a narrow strand where homes are close the shore--a few residents stacked sandbags and built deflective berms on the beachfront. Some said they began preparing for the high tides a year ago.

“Mentally, we started preparing when we looked at the (tide) tables,” said 68-year-old Basil Rose, who has experienced several storms during his 20 years of living on the waterfront. “As long as no storm accompanies the high tides, we will be safe,” he added.

Others have already cut plywood to shield their glass doors, Capistrano Bay District Manager Mike Farrier said.

In Huntington Beach, city crews installed large air bags in the city’s sewer system to keep it from being flooded by rising salt water. At the pier, it was business as usual for a demolition crew from Riedel International that is tearing down the 76-year-old structure, which has been declared structurally unsafe and closed.

“We’ve got our fingers crossed,” said Gary Davis, Riedel’s project manager. He added that the company has a large pile of sand ready to make a berm if the weather worsens.

“What it would take is a tropical storm or a real intensive storm from the Gulf of Alaska that makes its way south,” said Steve Burback, a meteorologist for WeatherData, which provides forecasts for The Times.

Although waterfront property owners were not taking any chances, conservationists said the high tides will benefit Orange County’s wetlands because they will flush out stagnant water.

“Anything that can bring an abundance of new . . . water and fresh oxygen is welcomed,” said Adrianne Morrison, executive director of Amigos de Bolsa Chica, an environmental group that protects the Bolsa Chica Wetlands.

“As long as there isn’t a storm along with the high tides and it doesn’t go over the levies or flood the oil fields, it is a positive thing. The more water the better,” Morrison said.

Because the low tides will be slightly lower than normal, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration has warned of possible navigational hazards.

A low tide was partially responsible for the February oil spill that blackened Orange County beaches. The American Trader oil tanker was approaching a marine terminal off Huntington Beach when its bow was snagged by its own anchor because of a combination of circumstances, including low tide and gradual sand shoaling.

Staff writers Bill Billiter, Marla Cone and Davan Maharaj contributed to this report.

The Water is Rising Unusual astronomic conditions will produce some of the year’s highest and lowest tides this month. Top Low Tides of 1990 May.25: -1.9’ June.22: -1.8’ Dec.2*: -1.7’ Dec. 31: -1.9’ Top High Tides of 1990 June.22: 7.1’ July.21: 7.1’ Dec.2*: 7.3’ Dec. 31: 7.3’ *Sunday Low tide at 1:48 a.m. at 2’ and again at 3:32 p.m. at -1.7’. High tide at 8:08 am at 7.3’. Note: The tides in Orange County vary from tides in the Los Angeles area by .3 of a foot. Source: National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration All-Time Highs and Lows Low Tides

Date Feet Dec.26,1932 -2.6 Dec.17, 1933 -2.6 Jan.6,1951 -2.2 Jan.7,1951 -2.2 Dec.29,1955 -2.1 Dec.12,1985 -2.1

High Tides

Date Feet Jan.27,1983 8.0 Jan.8,1974 7.8 Nov.30,1982 7.8 Jan.9,1978 7.6 Dec.20,1972 7.6 Dec.30,1978 7.6