201901.09
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Check out what big waves did to this 40-foot ‘pirate’ ship, and at Capo Beach and Seal Beach coasts

by in News

  • Big waves slammed the Southern California coastline on Wednesday, Jan. 9, 2019. Strong surf is expected to continue through the week. A 40-foot boat washed up at Dockweiler State Beach. (Photo courtesy of Los Angeles County lifeguard spokesman Pono Barnes.)

  • A surfer rides inside a wave just south of the Huntington Beach Pier in Huntington Beach on Wednesday morning January 9, 2019, as a large swell moved onshore with waves as high as 10-12 feet in some places. (Photo by Mark Rightmire, Orange County Register/SCNG)

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  • Big waves slammed the Southern California coastline on Wednesday, Jan. 9, 2019. Strong surf is expected to continue through the week. A 40-foot boat washed up at Dockweiler State Beach. (Photo courtesy of Los Angeles County lifeguard spokesman Pono Barnes.)

  • A body boarder rides inside a large wave just south of the Seal Beach Pier in Seal Beach on Wednesday morning January 9, 2019, as a large swell moved onshore with waves as high as 10-12 feet in some places. (Photo by Mark Rightmire, Orange County Register/SCNG)

  • A surfer bails off a wave just south of the Huntington Beach Pier in Huntington Beach on Wednesday morning January 9, 2019, as a large swell moved onshore with waves as high as 10-12 feet in some places. (Photo by Mark Rightmire, Orange County Register/SCNG)

  • A body boarder rides a large wave just south of the Seal Beach Pier in Seal Beach on Wednesday morning January 9, 2019, as a large swell moved onshore with waves as high as 10-12 feet in some places. (Photo by Mark Rightmire, Orange County Register/SCNG)

  • A body boarder rides down the face of a wave just south of the Seal Beach Pier in Seal Beach on Wednesday morning January 9, 2019, as a large swell moved onshore with waves as high as 10-12 feet in some places. (Photo by Mark Rightmire, Orange County Register/SCNG)

  • Body and skim boarders stand on the beach just south of the Seal Beach Pier in Seal Beach on Wednesday morning January 9, 2019, as large waves pound the beach as a swell moved onshore with waves as high as 10-12 feet in some places. (Photo by Mark Rightmire, Orange County Register/SCNG)

  • A body boarder looks up at the closing wave as a large swell moved onshore Wednesday morning January 9, 2019, just south of the Seal Beach Pier in Seal Beach. (Photo by Mark Rightmire, Orange County Register/SCNG)

  • A body boarder rides inside a large wave just south of the Seal Beach Pier in Seal Beach on Wednesday morning January 9, 2019, as a large swell moved onshore with waves as high as 10-12 feet in some places. (Photo by Mark Rightmire, Orange County Register/SCNG)

  • Big waves slammed the Southern California coastline on Wednesday, Jan. 9, 2019. Strong surf is expected to continue through the week. Waves crash onto Capistrano Beach in Dana Point, an area that has been destroyed by the sea in recent years. (Photo by Laylan Connelly, Orange County Register/SCNG)

  • Big waves slammed the Southern California coastline on Wednesday, Jan. 9, 2019. Strong surf is expected to continue through the week. Waves crash onto Capistrano Beach in Dana Point, an area that has been destroyed by the sea in recent years. (Photo by Laylan Connelly, Orange County Register/SCNG)

  • Big waves slammed the Southern California coastline on Wednesday, Jan. 9, 2019. Strong surf is expected to continue through the week. Waves crash onto Capistrano Beach in Dana Point, an area that has been destroyed by the sea in recent years. (Photo by Laylan Connelly, Orange County Register/SCNG)

  • Beach goers walk along the sand berm just south of the Seal Beach Pier in Seal Beach on Wednesday morning January 9, 2019, as large waves pound the beach as a swell moved onshore with waves as high as 10-12 feet in some places. (Photo by Mark Rightmire, Orange County Register/SCNG)

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A big swell showed up off the Southern California coastline on Wednesday, Jan. 9, bringing strong surf and dangerous conditions for beachgoers.

Waves upwards of 10 to 12 feet were hitting some areas as the swell moved into the region, prompting the National Weather Service to issue a high surf advisory in Orange County, Los Angeles County and San Diego.

“Strong rip currents will create hazardous swimming conditions. Minor coastal flooding and beach erosion are possible. The surf will peak this afternoon into Thursday morning, then slowly subside Thursday afternoon and evening,” the advisory reads.

The waves will ease slightly Friday evening, but big surf will continue into the weekend with 4-to-7-foot surf expected late Saturday and into Sunday, according to Surfline.com.

Pirate ship?

A 40-foot boat that was anchored offshore washed onto Dockweiler State Beach on Wednesday afternoon, said Los Angeles County lifeguard spokesman Pono Barnes.

“We have a couple of vessels that anchor offshore of the Marina del Rey harbor. Sometimes, those anchors aren’t put in well… the anchors didn’t hold and it ended up on the beach,” he said.

The boat, which appeared to be unmanned while getting tossed around in the surf, was flying a pirate flag according to live video from ABC7.

Barnes said workers were hauling it up further on the sand. The boat owner is responsible for hiring a company to get it off the beach.

“The vessel is too big and the surf is too big to haul it out” to the sea, he said, noting it could have damage to the underside.

He said no one was aboard when the boat washed ashore in 5-to-7-foot surf.

A small-craft advisory by the NWS warning boats off shore is also in place.

Surf’s up

State Park Superintendent Kevin Pearsall said waves were 10 to 12 feet high off Bolsa Chica, adding that they were the biggest he’s seen in a few years.

In Seal Beach, waves were in the 5-to-7-foot range, with nearby Surfside getting 10-footers, said lifeguard chief Joe Bailey.

A few people near the Huntington Beach Pier needed assistance from lifeguards, said Marine Safety Lt. Claude Panis.

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One surfer, Panis said, needed a rescue ski assist after “he paddled out and realized he bit off more than he could chew.”

A surfer rides inside a wave just south of the Huntington Beach Pier in Huntington Beach on Wednesday morning January 9, 2019, as a large swell moved onshore with waves as high as 10-12 feet in some places. (Photo by Mark Rightmire, Orange County Register/SCNG)

Another rescue came when a kayak fisherman was uncomfortable with the size of the surf and asked for a tow to shore.

“He was uneasy being out there,” Panis said, adding that the surf is “definitely up.”

Flooding

A stretch of Capistrano Beach that has been ravaged in recent years by strong swells and high tides continued to be flooded with salt water, with waves crashing into a parking lot and onto a basketball court.

One woman standing too close to the shoreline was drenched with a surprise splash of whitewash from a rogue wave.

Keith Miller, who lives in Dana Point, was enjoying lunch when a wave pelted him with rocks as he watched the surf.

Still, he enjoyed the view.

“I love it, there’s so much energy. It’s crazy You can feel it in the air,” he said.

Bryce Kolburn came down with a basketball hoping to play a game, but the nets had been taken down and a portion of the court was sinking, with signs warning that the area is closed.

“I figured it would be open,” he said, as he took photos of the ocean. “I have to go play somewhere else.”