▲ Homes in Long Beach flooded by high waves
Coastal roads and homes in Southern California have been submerged by seawater under the influence of a tropical storm.
The Los Angeles Times (LAT) reported on the 10th (local time) that coastal flood warnings have been issued from Malibu to San Diego, and beaches and piers in Newport Beach have been closed.
Mandatory evacuation orders have been issued for residents in Long Beach, where the situation is most severe.
As tropical storm Rachel moved toward Southern California, wave heights increased, and the combination of onshore winds and high tide is believed to have led to the coastal flooding in the area.
The National Weather Service warned that areas facing the ocean to the south, such as Long Beach and Malibu, are particularly vulnerable to flooding from seawater.
On social media that day, videos and images captured coastal roads in Newport Beach flooded with cars wading through the current, as well as people surfing among submerged palm trees.
Coastal residents expressed anxiety over the flooding, which they said had not occurred in decades.
Joe Angelo, who bought a home on the Newport coast 27 years ago, said, "I am shocked. In the past 27 years, I have never seen a single drop of water touch that sand, and now the whole thing is submerged."
He added, "I love living by the coast, but this makes me rethink it."
Daniel Swain, a climatologist at the University of California, Agriculture and Natural Resources, explained, "This is a very unusual phenomenon caused by a pressure trough arriving early off the California coast along with rising water temperatures."
(Photo: AP, Yonhap News)
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