High Surf Keeps Area’s Lifeguards Busy

Unusual winter-like surf pounded Los Angeles-area beaches Tuesday, damaging oceanfront homes and businesses in Malibu and creating dangerous riptides that sucked hundreds of swimmers from knee-deep water into offshore currents.

Los Angeles County lifeguards at Zuma Beach were so busy rescuing beachgoers who flocked there to escape hot, muggy weather in the San Fernando Valley that they were no longer keeping count by late afternoon. There were no drownings reported.

“We’ve had some very close calls. We had two 8-year-old boys pulled out near tower 4 that spooked us in the headquarters bad,” said lifeguard Jon Van Duinwyk. “We were lucky one of the giant waves didn’t get them before we did.”

As Van Duinwyk spoke, a county rescue boat was picking up a swimmer being drawn out by a riptide near Zuma’s tower 10. Lifeguards were battling both lateral currents and riptides made worse by waves sometimes reaching 8 feet in height.

The surf was reported even higher in Orange County, where waves at Newport Beach reached 12 feet.

The high surf was blamed on what National Weather Service forecasters described as “a very long-period swell” from a storm in the Southern Hemisphere last week. They said higher than normal surf is expected through Thursday on south-facing beaches.

It is midwinter in the Southern Hemisphere and last week’s storm was similar to those that occur here in January or February.

The high surf threatened to undermine some lifeguard towers in place for the summer season.

Lifeguards used shovels and tractors to shore up towers south of Malibu.

In Newport Beach, towers had to be uprooted and moved farther from the water’s edge.

High water also sent beachfront property owners scurrying to build sand berms to protect structures such as the cabanas at the Bel Air Bay Club near Pacific Palisades.

Two homes in celebrity-filled Malibu Colony were damaged by breakers at high tide late Monday night, authorities said.

One home’s deck was torn away in the 23500 block of Malibu Colony Drive and the deck of a neighboring home was damaged, according to county firefighters.

High surf caused minor damage to the Pier View Cafe in the 22700 block of Pacific Coast Highway. Wood decking in a patio area was ripped loose and covered with sand that was washed over a retaining wall by the waves.

Workmen hired to shovel out the patio called for reinforcements by midday. “I’m just thankful we don’t have a party scheduled here for today. I’ve got two booked for Saturday,” said Pier View banquet manager Valerie Eto as she surveyed the damage.

Sunbathers at Puerco Beach spread their towels among debris left by the high tide. The mess included logs, railroad ties and pieces of stairways ripped from nearby homes that are built on supports over the sand.

“I’ve been coming here 10 years and I’ve never seen the tide this high,” said Ruth Mason of Camarillo. “There’s a lot more sand on the beach today than normal too.”

Malibu Road resident David Lawson, whose home sits above Puerco Beach on legs fashioned from telephone poles, said Monday evening’s high tide was spectacular.

“The place shook all night from the waves,” said Lawson, a contractor. “We stayed up and watched.”

Lawson wasn’t alone. Waves engulfed the bottoms of low-lying beachfront homes and spilled onto the 21600 block of Pacific Coast Highway, leaving a layer of sand and debris on the road.

The wave action was termed the best of the summer by surfers along the coast.

“I’m a stockbroker and everyone knows that if the surf is good that’s where I’ll be,” said Matt Kelly, 40. He took the day off, surfing for three hours at Surfer’s Point in Ventura.

Malibu’s Surfrider Beach was filled throughout the day with surfers grabbing one spectacular wave after another.

“These are the best swells we’ve had in a while. Some are over your head,” said veteran Topanga Canyon surfer Doug Ryan, a motion picture cameraman.

Surfers had anticipated Tuesday’s waves for several days, said John Casey, a Loyola Marymount professor of religion and Sanskrit who lives in Santa Monica.

“It’s a little bit of a circus with so many people in the water. But it’s a perfect day,” Casey said.

Lifeguards had a different view, however.

They said Tuesday’s waves were strong enough to snap surfboards and they urged young children to stay close to shore in water no deeper than their waists.

They said anyone caught in a riptide should swim parallel to the shore until they reach safety.

Times staff writers Jaimee Rose in Orange County and Catherine Blake in Ventura County contributed to this story.

(BEGIN TEXT OF INFOBOX / INFOGRAPHIC)

Dangerous Currents

How riptides form:

1. Incoming surf traps water on shore.

2. Water flows along beach until reaching dip in sea floor.

3. Dip channels water back to sea, creating fast-moving current.

Spotting Riptides:

* Frothy, brown water

* Incoming waves flattened

Escaping the Pull

* Don’t panic or swim against current

* Once current wanes, swim parallel to shore

* When possible, ride incoming waves.