In mid-August on Long Beach’s Alamitos Peninsula, a lone bulldozer struggled to push wet, heavy sand out of the ocean and onto the shore. It was part of the city’s doomed effort to save a row of multimillion-dollar oceanfront homes from a looming king tide. |
More than two months and several El Niño-driven storms and high tides later, parts of the peninsula are in tatters. At least eight structures, including houses and apartment complexes, have been so severely battered by the waves that inspectors red-tagged them, meaning they are no longer safe to occupy. Many others have been damaged, but less severely. |
Sections of the nearly mile-long boardwalk have been pounded to splinters or buried so deep in sediment that they have practically disappeared. |
Video of the destruction is so ubiquitous online that the peninsula has become a global symbol of our collective struggles against the rising sea. |
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As part of a dredging project, crews are pumping sand onto the peninsula to widen the beach and protect homes from severe storm erosion. (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times) |
Stumbling across a beach that is growing — not shrinking |
But when I visited the peninsula during Tuesday morning’s nearly record-high tide, I saw something astonishing: the beach in front of those red-tagged houses had not only been restored, it was growing before my eyes. |
A long-planned project to dredge the channel leading into nearby Alamitos Bay began a week ago. A steel pipeline was installed from the dredging barge, over the stone jetty, and onto the perilously thin strip of beach remaining in front of the most at-risk houses on the peninsula. |
Standing with your hand on the huge steel pipe, you could feel it throb as the stony sediment from the channel rushed through, pinging and clanking on its way to the newly expanded beach. |
At the other end, black sludge gushed out — 20,000 to 35,000 cubic yards a day, according to a construction foreman who asked that his name not be used because he’s not authorized to speak to the media — and two bulldozers smoothed it into the shape of the new beach. |
By contrast, the dump trucks the city had been using since August could move only about 10 cubic yards at a time. |
“It’s like the movie ‘Jaws,’” the foreman said. “Sometimes, you’re just gonna need a bigger boat.” |
You could probably sunbathe on part of it, but the bulldozers might kill the vibe. |
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Sand is pumped from the San Gabriel River mouth as a dredging project is underway that will add sand to Long Beach’s peninsula. (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times) |
The goal of a multimillion-dollar dredging project |
The dredging, which is needed to ensure safe navigation for boaters, is expected to cost $11.4 million and continue until February, according to the city’s website. |
But even as residents of Long Beach’s peninsula are starting to see some relief, beach communities up and down the California coast are struggling to cope with this week’s massive high tides. |
On Monday morning, the tides sent seawater pouring into business districts in Newport Beach and flooded part of Pacific Coast Highway in Sunset Beach, according to my colleagues Rong-Gong Lin II and Hannah Fry. Seawater levels reached an all-time high in San Pedro, topping 8 feet, they reported. |
The current tides are higher than usual for several reasons, including the fact that this year’s strong El Niño has warmed the Pacific Ocean to record temperatures, and water volume expands as it warms. Even without big swells from storms, the tides alone are nearly 2 feet higher than they would otherwise be, Lin and Fry wrote. |
The absence of big swells was a relief on the peninsula Tuesday morning. Even with the water higher than I’d ever seen, the ocean was almost perfectly flat. With all of the new sand, and only the smallest waves lapping at it, the ocean-facing homes seemed safer than they have in months. |
A long, hazardous winter lies ahead |
But danger was creeping up from behind. |
Water was so high in Alamitos Bay, on the north side of the peninsula, that it was beginning to find its way through sand berms built to hold it back, putting houses on the other side of the peninsula at risk. |
With El Niño conditions expected to last at least until February, residents of low-lying communities up and down the California coast are in for a long winter, with regular reminders of the painful truth known to mariners and boat builders for centuries: The sea is relentless, it finds every weakness. |
Top stories |
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Left: City Councilwoman and Los Angeles mayoral candidate Nithya Raman in North Hollywood. Right, Mayor Karen Bass speaking to volunteers in Los Angeles. (Los Angeles Times) |
L.A. mayor’s race |
- With less than a week to go before election day, a new poll shows incumbent Karen Bass erasing the double-digit lead previously held by Councilmember Nithya Raman.
- Most of Bass’ come-from-behind surge is the result of her winning over voters who cast their ballot for Spencer Pratt in the June primary, the poll showed.
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California governor’s race |
- The two candidates running to replace termed-out Gov. Gavin Newsom have vastly different views on climate and energy policy.
- Here is where they stand on gas prices, electric vehicle mandates and California’s long-delayed high-speed rail project.
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Balcony solar in California |
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Commentary and opinion |
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Editor’s pick |
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Opening Nov. 13, the California Science Center’s $450-million Samuel Oschin Air and Space Center turns Southern California’s aerospace legacy into a sprawling, immersive museum experience. |
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More picks |
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Things to do |
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Endeavour is revealed for the first time to visitors through a haze of dramatic smoke after an inspirational J.J. Abrams-produced film about NASA’s space shuttle program. (Jason Armond / Los Angeles Times) |
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Today’s recipe |
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(Mariah Tauger / Los Angeles Times) |
As one of the founders of the French Laundry, chef Sally Schmitt is one of the pioneers of California cuisine, and her tortilla soup reflects her place in the state’s culinary history. By swapping in tomatillos for the more common tomatoes and pairing them with citrus, Schmitt brings bright, tangy notes to this simple soup. |
Question for you |
You’ve told us what your favorite Halloween candy is. Now we want to know: How much have you spent on Halloween candy this year? |
Email us at essentialcalifornia@latimes.com, and your response might appear in the newsletter this week. |
Photo of the day |
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These skeletons on the “Indiana Jones Adventure: Temple of the Forbidden Eye” ride at Disneyland, dulled by dust, were cleaned and repainted to glow brighter under black light. The ride underwent six weeks of refurbishment and reopened Oct. 23. (Myung J. Chun / Los Angeles Times) |
Games |
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Here’s today’s mini crossword, plus our other free, daily crossword puzzle, sudoku, word search and jigsaw games. |
Have a great day, from the Essential California team |
Jack Dolan, investigative reporter
Hugo Martín, assistant editor, fast break desk
Kevinisha Walker, multiplatform editor
Andrew Campa, weekend writer
Karim Doumar, head of newsletters |
How can we make this newsletter more useful? Send comments to essentialcalifornia@latimes.com. Check our top stories, topics and the latest articles on latimes.com. |
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