Newport Beach warned residents on Friday to brace for king tides that could push salt water into streets and homes from Saturday through Tuesday. The city said the risk is highest in low-lying beach neighborhoods and along parts of the harbor where evening high tides can back water up fast.
Tides are expected to reach 6.9 feet at 8:15 p.m. on Saturday, 7 feet at 9 p.m. on Sunday and about 7 feet at 9:50 p.m. on Monday. That puts Newport Island, Balboa Island, Finley Tract, Lido Village, Balboa Village, LaFayette Avenue, the Peninsula and portions of the Marcus, River and Lake avenues area in the path of possible localized flooding, along with street ponding that can make some roads difficult to cross.
City officials said crews are already working in places that have flooded before. Pumps have been deployed in historically affected areas, gap boards were installed on Balboa Island and sandbags were placed where they may do the most good. Residents with properties next to Newport Harbor were told to install seawall plugs and add more sandbags if needed.
Mark Vukojevic said crews will work throughout the weekend to monitor conditions and respond to localized flooding. He said the city has taken proactive steps to keep roadways accessible and has been in contact with property owners in areas that usually see ponding or have lower seawalls, urging them to protect their homes and property.
The warning lands after a recent run of strong swells that have chewed away at beaches, thinning the barrier between the ocean and nearby infrastructure. Newport Beach has lived through this before: in 2020, a mega swell combined with high tides on the Fourth of July flooded Balboa Peninsula neighborhoods and parking lots, trapping people for hours on flooded roads as they tried to leave after the festivities. In the summer of 2023, flooding hit the area near the Fun Zone and Sunset Beach in Huntington within days of each other.
There is one reason officials are not sounding the alarm more broadly. Riley Pratt said the tide will be high, but the swell will not be as high as last week, so the concern for flooding at the state beaches is not as large. Even so, the city is telling motorists to drive slowly through flooded areas to avoid wakes that can make the problem worse and to avoid parking in low-lying places that are vulnerable during high tides or rain.
Surf next week is expected to stay in the 6- to 8-foot range, with even larger waves at the Wedge. For Newport Beach, the immediate question is not whether the water will rise; it is how far it will reach in neighborhoods that have flooded before when tides, surf and a small margin for error all line up at once.
