High Surf • Coastal Flooding • Storm Response
Recent high surf, Pacific hurricane-generated swell, coastal flooding, beach erosion, wave overtopping, and scour have increased concern for seawalls, bulkheads, revetments, waterfront foundations, docks, marinas, and oceanfront properties throughout Southern California.
Long-period swell generated by Eastern Pacific hurricanes can affect the Southern California coast even when the storm remains hundreds of miles offshore. When large waves coincide with high tides, elevated water levels, seasonal beach erosion, or winter storms, coastal structures can experience substantially higher loading and greater risk of flooding, overtopping, scour, and structural deterioration.
With El Niño conditions developing for 2026–2027, waterfront property owners, HOAs, architects, developers, marina operators, and public agencies should consider the condition and capacity of existing coastal protection systems before additional winter storm exposure.
Historical El Niño Coastal Damage
Review documented coastal erosion, flooding, wave damage, seawall and pier damage, bluff failures, and emergency shoreline protection from two of California's most significant historical El Niño periods.
View Historical Southern California DamageHistorical Coastal Storm Context
Southern California has experienced major coastal impacts during previous strong El Niño winters. The 1982–1983 and 1997–1998 events are among the best-documented extreme El Niño events in California and provide important historical context for evaluating coastal exposure.
During the 1982–1983 El Niño, a sequence of powerful storms, elevated water levels, high tides, and large waves produced widespread beach erosion, coastal flooding, bluff and cliff erosion, and damage to coastal structures. California Coastal Commission records cite U.S. Army Corps of Engineers reporting that 33 oceanfront homes were destroyed and approximately 3,000 homes and 900 coastal businesses were damaged statewide by storm surge, waves, erosion, and related forces.
Malibu was also affected during the 1982–1983 winter. The City of Malibu's 2026 Coastal Hazard Vulnerability Assessment documents damage to Paradise Cove Pier, shoreline and cliff erosion, damage to buildings along the Malibu coastline, and destruction of some homes supported on pier foundations above the beach.
The 1997–1998 El Niño was another extreme event. California experienced significant rainfall, coastal erosion, flooding, landslides, and storm-related damage. These historical events demonstrate that coastal damage is often controlled by a combination of wave energy, wave direction, water level, tide, beach condition, storm sequence, and the existing condition of the coastal protection system—not by a single parameter.
2026–2027 El Niño Outlook
As of September 2026, NOAA reports that El Niño is strengthening and that there is greater than a 90 percent chance of a very strong El Niño during the Northern Hemisphere fall and winter of 2026–2027. NOAA model guidance indicates that the event could rank among the strongest El Niño events in the historical record extending back to 1950.
A strong or very strong El Niño does not mean that every storm will strike Southern California or that every coastal property will experience damage. However, historical experience shows that strong El Niño conditions can contribute to elevated coastal water levels and a storm and wave environment capable of producing substantial erosion and coastal impacts when large swell, high tide, storm surge, and vulnerable shoreline conditions occur together.
For coastal engineering, the important issue is therefore not simply the El Niño classification. The condition of the beach, seawall, revetment, bluff, foundation, drainage system, tiebacks, piles, and other waterfront structures should be considered together with site-specific wave exposure and water levels.
Recent Southern California Damage
Recent events have already demonstrated the vulnerability of portions of the Southern California shoreline. In early September 2026, large hurricane-generated swell and elevated tides affected coastal communities from Malibu through Orange County.
In Malibu, powerful surf and beach erosion contributed to the collapse of a driveway and development of a large sinkhole at a beachfront property, prompting a local emergency and evacuations. Continued erosion has also left portions of Point Dume State Beach with little or no sandy beach area except around low tide. These conditions illustrate how rapid loss of beach material can expose foundations, coastal structures, utilities, access areas, and bluff or shoreline improvements to increased wave action and scour.
Along the Long Beach Peninsula, hurricane-generated waves overtopped or breached coastal protection, damaged sections of the historic boardwalk, and caused flooding and erosion near oceanfront residences. Approximately 20 homes were evacuated while officials evaluated structural damage. Reports also documented damaged garages, cracked concrete, soil erosion, and concern regarding the condition of the seawall and foundations.
Capistrano Beach experienced some of the most severe recent property damage. Powerful waves damaged oceanfront homes along Beach Road, including decks, walls, and shoreline protection. Dana Point declared a local emergency after at least 16 homes were reported damaged; multiple residences were red-tagged or yellow-tagged as damage assessments continued. Subsequent reports documented additional red-tagged properties and demolition of severely damaged structures.
These recent events were associated with hurricane-generated swell, high tides, erosion, and elevated coastal water conditions. They should not be interpreted as proof of the eventual severity or specific impacts of the 2026–2027 winter. They do, however, provide a current example of how quickly shoreline conditions can change when large waves coincide with high water levels and an eroded or vulnerable beach profile.
Coastal Hazard Analysis
A coastal engineering evaluation should consider more than offshore wave height. For oceanfront and waterfront properties, important parameters may include wave height, wave period, wave direction, wave setup, wave runup, wave overtopping, astronomical tide, storm water level, FEMA Base Flood Elevation (BFE), NAVD88 elevation, beach profile, nearshore bathymetry, coastal erosion, scour, and sea level rise.
A wave runup analysis evaluates the vertical extent of wave action above the still-water elevation along a beach, seawall, revetment, bluff, or coastal slope. Runup and overtopping can be influenced by wave period, water depth, shoreline geometry, seawall configuration, revetment roughness, beach slope, and future sea level rise.
For many coastal properties, FEMA BFE alone does not define the complete coastal hazard. Site-specific evaluation may also need to address wave attack, erosion, wave overtopping, shoreline change, and future design water levels.
We provide Coastal Hazard Analysis and Sea Level Rise studies for projects involving oceanfront, bayfront, harbor, and waterfront development. Depending on the jurisdiction and project scope, the analysis may support planning, structural design, permit applications, and coordination with the California Coastal Commission and local agencies.
Structural Assessment
A seawall structural assessment should evaluate the entire structural and geotechnical system—not simply visible surface cracks.
Existing seawalls and bulkheads may include reinforced concrete panels, precast concrete, steel sheet piles, timber systems, soldier piles, tiebacks, deadman anchors, walers, piles, footings, coping, drainage systems, and toe protection.
High surf can remove beach or seabed material from the toe of a seawall, reducing foundation support and passive soil resistance. In some cases, the most critical portion of the wall can only be observed during sufficiently low tide conditions.
We also prepare Bulkhead Condition Reports for bayfront, harbor, marina, and waterfront properties to document existing conditions and identify recommended maintenance, repair, strengthening, or replacement.
Shore Protection
We provide revetment engineering and design for oceanfront properties, coastal roads, residential developments, and shoreline protection projects.
A properly engineered revetment requires more than large armor stone. Design may include evaluation of wave conditions, armor stone sizing, rock density, slope, armor-layer thickness, underlayer, filter system, geotextile, toe embedment, crest elevation, wave runup, overtopping, scour, settlement, and flanking.
Where appropriate, coastal analyses and designs may incorporate established U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) coastal engineering methodologies, including guidance from the USACE Coastal Engineering Manual for waves, shore protection, runup, overtopping, coastal flooding, and revetment design.
Revetment & Riprap EngineeringWaterfront Structures
High water levels, waves, currents, vessel loads, and long-term marine exposure can also affect harbor and marina structures.
Our professional engineering services include floating docks, fixed docks, gangways, marine piles, waterfront decks, fender systems, pile-supported structures, and marina improvements.
Engineering considerations may include wind, current and wave loading, berthing and mooring forces, pile lateral capacity, pile embedment, corrosion, connection deterioration, tidal movement, gangway geometry, and overwater coverage.
Post-Storm Evaluation
Following a high-surf or coastal flooding event, visible damage may represent only part of the problem.
Changes worth evaluating include new or widening cracks, seawall movement, concrete spalling, exposed reinforcement, soil loss, yard settlement, sinkholes, voids below slabs, toe scour, revetment displacement, wave overtopping, dock movement, pile displacement, gangway damage, and waterfront deck damage.
Early documentation and engineering assessment can help establish the existing condition and determine whether monitoring, repair, structural strengthening, rehabilitation, or replacement is appropriate before additional storms occur.
Request an Engineering EvaluationSouthern California
We provide professional coastal and waterfront engineering services from Santa Barbara to San Diego and Coronado.
Our coastal engineering services include seawall design, seawall structural assessment, Bulkhead Condition Reports, Coastal Hazard Analysis, wave runup analysis, FEMA BFE and NAVD88 evaluation, sea level rise analysis, revetment design, coastal flooding assessment, marina engineering, floating dock design, gangway design, and marine pile design.
Seawalls • Bulkheads • Coastal Hazard Analysis • Wave Runup Analysis • Sea Level Rise • FEMA BFE • NAVD88 • Revetments • Coastal Flooding • Marinas • Floating Docks • Gangways • Marine Piles
Serving Southern California from Santa Barbara to Ventura, Malibu, Santa Monica, Long Beach, Seal Beach, Sunset Beach, Huntington Beach, Newport Beach, Laguna Beach, Dana Point, San Clemente, Carlsbad, San Diego and Coronado.
If your seawall, bulkhead, revetment, marina, dock, waterfront deck, or coastal property has experienced high surf, flooding, wave overtopping, erosion, settlement, cracking, scour, or soil loss, a professional engineering evaluation can help determine the condition of the existing system and the appropriate next step.