El Niño Brings California Ocean Levels Up 2 Feet

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Water levels off Southern California have been running up to two feet higher than at this time last year, with tide gauges in San Pedro, La Jolla and Santa Barbara setting records in recent weeks, according to The Weather Company. El Niño sends Kelvin waves, long, slow bulges of warm water, up the West Coast, raising the starting level for waves. Waves can reach farther up beaches and speed erosion of protective dunes and bluffs. California's Coastal Commission is urging coastal communities to prepare for potentially more frequent coastal flooding when winter storms coincide with high tides.  Disclosure: This video contains stock footage and content created or enhanced using AI-assisted tools.

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00:00The ocean off Southern California is running up to two feet higher than this time last year.

00:05Tide gauges in San Pedro, La Jolla, and Santa Barbara have set records in recent weeks.

00:10So what's lifting the water? It's El Nino, which sends huge underwater waves of warm water across

00:16the Pacific. They're called Kelvin waves, slow bulges of warm water, not surf. When they reach

00:22the Americas, they turn north and follow the coast. Right now, they're moving up the west coast.

00:27That extra water is already pushing high tides into coastal neighborhoods. It lets waves reach

00:33farther up beaches and closer to seawalls. It can also speed up erosion of protective dunes and bluffs.

00:39The bigger test could come with winter storms. If big waves arrive during high tides,

00:44coastal flooding could become more frequent. California's Coastal Commission is urging

00:48communities to prepare. And the year's highest tides are still on the way. Disclosure. This

00:54video contains stock footage and content created or enhanced using AI assisted tools.

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