Big surf, coastal flooding warning issued for Sunday evening
February 22nd, 2008 ·

The National Weather Service issued today a warning of high surf and possible minor coastal flooding in low-laying areas on Sunday evening.
The large west swell expected to bring surf in the 10-to 15-foot range all along the coast will stick around through Monday, according to the NWS.
The surf will build rapidly through late Sunday afternoon. Some standout spots could see waves more than 20 feet in height.

Boaters should be prepared to stay out or return to port prior to Sunday afternoon because entering or leaving the harbors might be dangerous, the warning reads.

Surfline.com just send out a brief about the upcoming swell. Here's what the forecasters had to say:


Large W swell arrives Sunday the 24th through Monday the 25th
SoCal Breaks: 6-12' faces Sun PM/Mon AM, sets locally to 15-18'+
NorCal Breaks: 10-20' faces Sun, sets locally to 25-30'
High tides could cause coastal flooding in low lying areas
Low tides lead to breaking waves at west-facing harbor entrances


We wanted to give you a heads up on a very large West swell that will build into California on Sunday before dropping through the day on Monday.

For Northern and Central California the surf will rapidly build through the day on Sunday, largest over the early afternoon, before wave heights drop quickly on Monday. Low lying coastal areas could very well see some flooding during the high tide Sunday early afternoon and early Monday morning and any necessary precautions to prevent property damage should be taken into consideration. Furthermore, west facing harbor entrances will see breaking waves around the low tide on Sunday late afternoon/evening.

While Southern California spots won't see quite the surf sizes experienced north of Point Conception, the swell is very west' and will be able to show significant energy at many beaches. Look for the surf to quickly build over the afternoon on Sunday, with the peak of the swell likely occurring overnight. Strong surf will still be present Monday morning, but will drop through the day. Low lying coastal areas in Southern California could also experience coastal flooding, especially later Sunday night when the swell is strongest and the tide high. West facing harbor entrances will also likely see breaking waves both Sunday afternoon and Monday morning during the low tides.