{"id":457993,"date":"2026-09-09T06:18:12","date_gmt":"2026-09-09T06:18:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/457993\/"},"modified":"2026-09-09T06:18:12","modified_gmt":"2026-09-09T06:18:12","slug":"high-seas-fail-steve-hilton-calls-for-action-as-long-beach-peninsula-takes-pounding","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/457993\/","title":{"rendered":"\u2018High-seas fail\u2019: Steve Hilton calls for action as Long Beach Peninsula takes pounding"},"content":{"rendered":"<p> <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/yqvb1tu5zn6wb4n1.jpg\" alt=\"High surf continues to pound California coast\" class=\"sr-only\" data-v-892ef6a8=\"\"\/>    <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/yqvb1tu5zn6wb4n1.jpg\" alt=\"High surf continues to pound California coast\" loading=\"eager\" fetchpriority=\"high\" class=\"vod-poster-image vod-poster-image--embedded\" data-v-5173a8d8=\"\"\/>    <\/p>\n<p data-v-94395e58=\"\">LONG BEACH, Calif. &#8211; Gubernatorial candidate Steve Hilton is calling for action along the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.foxla.com\/tag\/us\/ca\" target=\"_self\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\">California<\/a> coast as powerful swells from <a href=\"https:\/\/www.foxla.com\/tag\/weather\/hurricanes\" target=\"_self\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\">Hurricane Marie<\/a> continue pounding the Long Beach Peninsula.<\/p>\n<p data-v-94395e58=\"\">Hilton visited the Peninsula Tuesday as residents faced a third straight day of dangerous surf, damaged infrastructure and waves threatening homes.<\/p>\n<p data-v-94395e58=\"\">&#8220;It\u2019s really disappointing we haven\u2019t heard from the governor,&#8221; Hilton said. &#8220;We\u2019ve got the high-speed rail, this is high-seas fail. They can\u2019t seem to get anything done.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p data-v-94395e58=\"\">Hilton was asked whether he could do anything about the problem as governor.<\/p>\n<p data-v-94395e58=\"\">&#8220;Yes exactly, and this is up and down the coast by the way,&#8221; he said. &#8220;Clear out the bureaucrats that don\u2019t know what they\u2019re doing, put in there serious people with a construction background, with an engineering background.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p> Long Beach Peninsula battered by Hurricane Marie swell <\/p>\n<p data-v-94395e58=\"\">Marie is now a post-tropical cyclone hundreds of miles offshore, but its powerful swell continues to slam the California coast.<\/p>\n<p data-v-94395e58=\"\">For three days, the Long Beach Peninsula has taken hit after hit.<\/p>\n<p data-v-94395e58=\"\">Massive waves ripped apart sections of the boardwalk and flooded streets Sunday.<\/p>\n<p data-v-94395e58=\"\">By Monday, about 20 homes were ordered to evacuate as the seawall suffered significant damage.<\/p>\n<p>  <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/cxhsk191gvbkq7u4.jpg\" alt=\"Massive waves hit Long Beach\" class=\"sr-only\" data-v-892ef6a8=\"\"\/>    <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/cxhsk191gvbkq7u4.jpg\" alt=\"Massive waves hit Long Beach\" loading=\"eager\" fetchpriority=\"high\" class=\"vod-poster-image vod-poster-image--embedded\" data-v-5173a8d8=\"\"\/>  <a href=\"https:\/\/www.foxla.com\/video\/fmc-bgtw57lawkz1g6s3\" data-v-892ef6a8=\"\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Massive waves hit Long Beach<\/a> <\/p>\n<p data-v-892ef6a8=\"\">Despite Hurricane Marie being far away from the California coast, parts of Long Beach felt the remnants as the area was hit with flooding and high surf.<\/p>\n<p data-v-94395e58=\"\">By Tuesday night, another barrage of waves was pounding the boardwalk.<\/p>\n<p data-v-94395e58=\"\">&#8220;We see storms all the time, high tide, big swells, this is the worst I\u2019ve ever seen,&#8221; one resident said.<\/p>\n<p data-v-94395e58=\"\">Another resident said the water is now getting dangerously close to homes.<\/p>\n<p data-v-94395e58=\"\">&#8220;It\u2019s exciting but also stressful,&#8221; the resident said. &#8220;Normally it\u2019s about 30 feet away from the sidewalk.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p> Sand berms washed away <\/p>\n<p data-v-94395e58=\"\">The latest damage is raising new questions about how the Peninsula can be protected from powerful storms.<\/p>\n<p data-v-94395e58=\"\">For decades, officials and researchers have studied ways to protect the narrow strip of land. One of the primary defenses has been sand.<\/p>\n<p data-v-94395e58=\"\">Giant sand berms were built along the beach to help absorb waves and protect the community. FOX 11 recorded those berms just three months ago.<\/p>\n<p data-v-94395e58=\"\">Now, much of that sand has been washed away.<\/p>\n<p data-v-94395e58=\"\">In some areas, even the ground beneath sections of the boardwalk and nearby homes has eroded.<\/p>\n<p data-v-94395e58=\"\">&#8220;They don\u2019t work because this section is a direct hit,&#8221; one resident said.<\/p>\n<p data-v-94395e58=\"\">Another resident described the frustration of watching the ocean move closer.<\/p>\n<p data-v-94395e58=\"\">&#8220;Oh, I\u2019m frustrated,&#8221; the resident said. &#8220;I\u2019m definitely regulating my cortisol right now.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p data-v-94395e58=\"\">Despite the damage, some residents said they were feeling more confident Tuesday night after crews worked to shore up vulnerable areas.<\/p>\n<p data-v-94395e58=\"\">Asked whether he felt better about conditions, one resident said, &#8220;I feel better. It\u2019s holding up pretty good.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p data-v-94395e58=\"\">The Long Beach Peninsula has spent years preparing for the next major storm.<\/p>\n<p data-v-94395e58=\"\">Now, residents are hoping the latest round of powerful waves is finally coming to an end.<\/p>\n<p>    <a href=\"https:\/\/www.foxla.com\/tag\/us\/ca\/los-angeles-county\/long-beach\" class=\"tags-tag\" data-v-94395e58=\"\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Long Beach<\/a><a href=\"https:\/\/www.foxla.com\/tag\/politics\/ca-politics\" class=\"tags-tag\" data-v-94395e58=\"\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">California Politics<\/a><a href=\"https:\/\/www.foxla.com\/tag\/weather\/severe-weather\" class=\"tags-tag\" data-v-94395e58=\"\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Severe Weather<\/a><a href=\"https:\/\/www.foxla.com\/tag\/us\/ca\/los-angeles-county\" class=\"tags-tag\" data-v-94395e58=\"\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Los Angeles County<\/a><a href=\"https:\/\/www.foxla.com\/tag\/series\/instastories\" class=\"tags-tag\" data-v-94395e58=\"\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Instastories<\/a><a href=\"https:\/\/www.foxla.com\/tag\/weather\/hurricanes\" class=\"tags-tag\" data-v-94395e58=\"\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Hurricanes<\/a> <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"LONG BEACH, Calif. &#8211; Gubernatorial candidate Steve Hilton is calling for action along the California coast as powerful&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":457994,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[33],"tags":[1184,5713,20631,2444,131,133,132,137,100,13,425,634,1181,19],"class_list":["post-457993","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-long-beach","tag-ca","tag-ca-politics","tag-hurricanes","tag-instastories","tag-long-beach","tag-long-beach-headlines","tag-long-beach-news","tag-los-angeles-county","tag-news","tag-politics","tag-series","tag-severe-weather","tag-us","tag-weather"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/457993","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=457993"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/457993\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/457994"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=457993"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=457993"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=457993"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}