Homeowners in Orange County are struggling after Tropical Storm Marie battered luxury beachfront properties in Dana Point, leaving nearly a dozen red-tagged.
Ten more homes have now been red-tagged, per the city of Laguna Beach, NBC Los Angeles reported. The city declared a local emergency earlier this week after swells from Hurricane Marie destroyed its beaches and eroded its shores, endangering oceanfront homes.
A Capistrano Bay District representative had confirmed that at least 14 homes along Beach Road in Dana Point’s Capistrano Beach were damaged over the Labor Day weekend.
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Beachfront homes in Dana Point are red-tagged after powerful waves battered Beach Road.
Contractors have been working to drop boulders in front of the homes to protect them from further damage.
“Government must respond quickly, document the full extent of the damage and pursue every available source of recovery assistance for communities,” said Orange County Supervisor Katrina Foley, according to the news outlet.
Even with Coastal Commission permits in hand, homeowners are left on their own to track down and pay for specialized repair crews.
“It’s getting worse. Every day, I get a phone call that there is a new home being affected,” Natalie Messana, whose home is now yellow-tagged, told NBC News.
Laguna Beach City Manager Dave Kiff, acting as the city’s Director of Emergency Services, said the amount of sand stripped from the shoreline is unprecedented.
The south end of Lagunita Beach, Pearl Street Beach, the footpath at Christmas Cove and the Aliso Beach parking lot are also temporarily closed.
Residents are building up their defense against the wild ocean waves by installing boulders and sand bags.
Laguna Beach declared a local emergency earlier this week after swells destroyed its beaches and eroded its shores.
“Swell beginning September 2 caused significant sand movement and erosion that is still ongoing,” the city said in a press release on Sept. 10.
“The proclamation allows the City to move immediately on emergency shoreline protection, sand placement, debris removal, assessments and repairs without the delay of ordinary contracting procedures.”
NOAA’s Climate Prediction Center projects “a greater than 90% chance of a very strong event” during this fall and winter and a “75% chance of a historic event that would exceed the strength of previous El Niño events dating back to 1950.”
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