Residents Kayak Past Submerged Cars As Tropical Storm Rachel Floods California Coastline

Residents paddled a kayak through flooded residential streets on Balboa Peninsula around 9 October as unusually high tides and Tropical Storm Rachel inundated parts of the Southern California coast.

X user Brian Fliesher filmed two people navigating the floodwater in a light blue kayak as others waded through the submerged street. A white car was partially underwater near the curb, with floodwater covering the roadway and sidewalks.

The flooding began overnight into 9 October and affected an estimated 15 to 20 blocks of the Balboa Peninsula. City officials reported that the morning tide reached around 20 inches above the predicted level.

Newport Beach declared a local emergency, closed its piers and the Wedge, and deployed pumps and sand berms to address the flooding. Residents resorted to kayaks, paddleboards and wading to move through the inundated streets.

Nearby Long Beach also experienced significant wave damage, with some homes receiving red tags.