SAN DIEGO (KGTV) — Major flooding hit Mission Beach on Monday morning as some of the highest tides recorded in recent memory struck San Diego's coast — and the National Weather Service says more flooding could be on the way.
The tide in La Jolla reached nearly 8 feet Monday morning, according to the National Weather Service. A coastal flood warning is in effect, with more high tides expected through Wednesday.
Right where the sand berm breached Monday morning, water poured onto the sidewalk and right up to people's front doors. Residents told me they feel this could have been avoided if the berm had been built higher.
Debbilyn Kovalik got the call from neighbors Monday morning that the sand berm in Mission Beach broke, sending water from the ocean rushing onto the sidewalk and into her home. When I walked inside with her, the water sloshed beneath our feet.
"It came up to here, and right in the sliding glass door, there's water all the way through," Kovalik said.
Kovalik said Mission Beach has dealt with flooding before, but never has it reached inside her home.
"All the drywall behind the baseboards. Yeah, there's going to be some damage," Kovalik said. "And so we're going to see what we can do to not have this happen again."
Just a couple of houses down, Jackie Nipper was dealing with the same problem. Nipper said it took seconds for the water to flood her yard when the berm broke.
"There was a tiny little gap and it was able to get through," Nipper said. "Every effort that we tried to make to keep it from coming in today failed."
Nipper runs Mission Bay Puppy Rescue, and for her, the flooding is more than a mess to clean up — it's a concern for the puppies.
"This is their front yard. This is where they play during the day. This is where people come and watch them and, and hopefully this is where they get adopted from," Nipper said. "I think we need to prepare for the rest of the season because this is just the beginning."
The city says crews are reinforcing the breached berm and using pumps to help with the flooding. With tides running higher than forecast, more flooding is possible.
Tidal forecasts are expected to reach over seven feet both Tuesday and Wednesday morning.
"We had the berms and everything, so I'm thinking, no big deal," Christopher McGinnis said, standing by the water. "It is about a foot above what is actually predicted."
McGinnis says he's lived in Mission Beach for the last 30 years and has never seen flooding like this. A Kelvin wave and warmer ocean temperatures are contributing to higher-than-predicted tide levels this El Niño season.
In the meantime, many residents were left wading through knee-deep waters to get in and out of their homes before the tide receded. For some, what was meant to be a relaxing vacation turned into a muddy disaster.
"I just went on a little beach walk this morning, and I knew it was high tide," Camille LeFever said. "On my way back, I was walking through the muck, and it was up to my knees ... I went in the shower and scrubbed off immediately."
LeFever, from Arizona, said she travels to San Diego twice a year to relax.
"I understand this is a once-in-a-lifetime experience, so we just have to go with the flow," Lefever said.
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