Still in recovery, Long Beach braces itself for El Niño

Still recovering from the impacts of Hurricane Marie weeks ago, Long Beach’s Peninsula neighborhood is preparing for more oncoming winter storms fueled by El Niño. 

Residents near the seaside walk area are barricading their homes with wood and sandbags placed at the entryway. While neighbors are helping each other protect their homes, Long Beach has declared a Local Emergency, and community meetings hope to alleviate worries. 

So far, the City estimates that the damages related to Hurricane Marie will reach over $1 million. This does not include the cost of proposed preparation efforts for the remainder of hurricane season, which ends Nov. 30. 

The aftermath of the waves left the boardwalk between 65th Place and 68th Place severely damaged in areas and some of the walkway temporarily closed. Beach sand disappeared, sucked into the ocean, exposing parts of the bulkhead that hadn’t been seen in decades.

Long Beach Declares Local Emergency

The City announced a Local Emergency on Sept. 22 related to the impacts of Hurricane Marie and threats of the 2026-27 El Niño and winter storm season.

Long Beach’s action follows California Governor Gavin Newsom’s State of Emergency proclamation on Sept. 21, directing agencies to take early action to protect vulnerable communities, critical infrastructure and emergency response capabilities.  

“We are asking the entire community to take this storm season seriously. Preparation is essential when forecasts point to the possibility of significant winter storms,” said City Manager Tom Modica in the state of emergency announcement. “This action will help City departments plan and deploy resources efficiently, maintain essential services and work with our regional and state partners to respond to a historic level of potential storm damage that may occur throughout the City and along the coast.” 

A Local State of Emergency allows the City to take certain actions quicker and with less red tape surrounding them. This includes approving the cost of repairs for approximately 1,000 linear feet of the bulkhead and plans to expand the beach surrounding the Peninsula, which is set to begin in a couple of weeks. 

A Community Braces Itself

Homes near the seaside walkway remain barricaded with wood, while sandbags are piled high in front of others; a neighborhood holding its breath. One home is still yellow-tagged by the Fire Department and is being treated with restricted use. 

Mavi Vergara, a resident who has lived in the Peninsula for 22 years near the end of the boardwalk, got help from a friend from Torrance to place sandbags at the entryway of her home and garage as they prepare for the upcoming waves. Vergara worries about the damage that could impact other homes, and the sand barrier disappearing from the front of her home. 

“Before Hurricane Marie, it was about 50 feet out. But now, after Hurricane Marie, it was like, ‘Oh, you’re going there,’” Vergara said. “I felt like living on a cliff, it’s too deep down.”

The City is considering five plans to restore the sand and repair the bulkhead in preparation of this year’s storms and future years, from replacing 100,000 cubic yards of sand to installing layers of rocks.

Marilyn Perona, a longtime resident of the Peninsula since 1966, witnessed the damaged remains of wood that once stood next to the boardwalk. She worries about the residents living at the boardwalk losing their beaches.

“It’s all gone, all the sand, so all we got now is this boardwalk and that could be undermined. That’s the biggest fear; it could be undermined and then get under the homes. So they’re working hard for the next three to four days to save that,” Perona said. “That just shows how much sand has really been taken away this time. The ocean’s been getting rougher and taking in more sand every year.”

Mixed Emotions at Community Meeting

A neighborhood meeting was held on Sept. 28, at the Los Alamitos Yacht Club with Third District Councilmember Kristina Duggan, along with members of various City departments, to inform residents about emergency preparedness and updates on repairs.

“There are coastal cities who lost hundreds and hundreds of feet of beach,” Councilmember Duggan said. “I’ve learned over the last few weeks, the more I understand, Hurricane Marie was about as close to the worst-case scenario.”

During the meeting, residents were informed about emergency preparedness for natural disasters, provided by the City’s Department of Disaster Preparedness and Emergency Communications (DPEC) Director Reggie Harrison and Fire Department Deputy Fire Chief James Farley. 

Parks, Recreation and Marine (PRM) Marine Bureau Manager Todd Leland informed residents about efforts to mitigate any damage to the bulkhead and prevent worsened coastal erosion. 

The first phase is cleaning up the debris and getting residents access to their homes as soon as possible. The second phase is to repair the damaged bulkhead with new lumber and large sandbags to temporarily protect the current repairs until they find a long-term solution.

“Think about it this way, with the bags, as if you’re a trainer for a heavyweight boxer, and that boxer is just hitting you in your abdomen, wouldn’t you want something in front of it? So that’s what we’re looking to do right there,” Marine Bureau Manager Leland said. “What you put in front of you is going to take damage, but what we want to do is to protect the body.”  

The meeting concluded with a Q&A as the City answered questions from residents regarding anything not mentioned in the presentation and updates. From potential permanent plans to requests to keep visitors off the area during disasters, there were both compliments and criticism of the events that followed Marie and the recovery efforts. 

David Black, a resident from 67th Place, was the last to speak to Duggan and City staff about the lack of available flood pumps during the events of Marie and requested that pumps be available during the winter storms. 

“We’re on our own in the Peninsula. We have to look out for our neighbors because we’re not going to have the help that we need,” Black said. “You’ve done a lot for Long Beach, but don’t come to me and say, ‘I’m sorry.’ Don’t say you’re sorry to me. That’s what children do when they say that to their parents.” 

Expanding the Beach

Public Works Director Joshua Hickman informed residents about a short-term support plan called the Alamitos Bay Channel Dredging Project. 

According to Hickman and the 24-page memorandum published on Sept. 25, the plan will restore navigable depths within the entrance channel to -20 ft mean lower-low water (MLLW), the average of the lower low water height of each tidal day observed over the National Tidal Datum Epoch according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).

The entrance channel provides recreational and commercial vessels access to the City’s marinas, boating facilities and waterfront destinations including Marine Stadium, Spinnaker Bay, Davies Boat Launch Ramp and Naples Island.

Dredging is expected to result in over 400,000 cubic yards of sand to nourish the beach. Long Beach set aside over $11 million from its Capital Improvement Program for the 2027 fiscal year.

“So the goal here is to take those 400,000 cubic yards of sand, nourish the beach, so you get kind of a win-win. We get better access to the bay as well as expanded beach,” Hickman said. 

Construction is expected to begin later this month and the City has worked with the contractor in hopes to get the work completed by the end of November, according to the Sept. 25 report.