A strong south-southeast swell brought high waves and dangerous surf to the Southern California coast January 9-10.
Every event with a place to put it; 2 filed by county or forecast zone are drawn at its center, in a lighter ring. Tap one for its entry below.
Deaths and injuries are direct and indirect together, as the offices filed them. Damage is property and crops in the dollars of the year, not adjusted for inflation, and only where an office estimated it.
The episode as NWS SGX wrote it up.
A strong south-southeast swell brought high waves and dangerous surf to the Southern California coast January 9-10.
The local office's own words before the first event, as it sent them, from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service text.
NWS San Diego, CA wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Jan 9, 2:50 AM PST, 5 hours 10 minutes earlier.
Area Forecast Discussion
National Weather Service San Diego CA
250 AM PST Wed Jan 9 2019
.SYNOPSIS...
High pressure aloft near the West Coast will move slowly inland
through Thursday with near average high temperatures. For Friday
night into Saturday, a low pressure system is expected to weaken
and move inland through Southern California spreading
precipitation inland, but with the more significant precipitation
remaining toward the coast. Some light precipitation is possible
on Sunday with another colder low pressure system moving inland
around Sunday night and Monday bringing more widespread showers.
High surf will begin impacting the beaches today with hazardous
swimming conditions and minor coastal flooding.
&&
.DISCUSSION...FOR EXTREME SOUTHWESTERN CALIFORNIA INCLUDING ORANGE...
SAN DIEGO...WESTERN RIVERSIDE AND SOUTHWESTERN SAN BERNARDINO
COUNTIES...
.SHORT TERM (Today through Friday)...
Weakening high pressure aloft will move inland today with a weak
trough of low pressure moving inland across the area tonight
followed by brief high pressure aloft for Thursday into early
Friday. Weak onshore flow will prevail with near seasonal high
temperatures. There will be some high clouds at times with a
return of night and morning low clouds and fog extending into the
western valleys at times.
&&
.LONG TERM (Friday night through Tuesday)...
A weakening low pressure system is expected to move inland through
southern California on Friday night and Saturday spreading
precipitation inland for late Friday night into Saturday morning.
With the system weakening as it moves inland, the greater rainfall
is expected across the coastal waters possibly extending into
areas along the coast with decreasing amounts as it moves inland.
Saturday night is expected to be dry with small chances for light
precipitation on Sunday.
Another low pressure system will move towards the California coast
on Sunday. It could bring additional precipitation to southwest
California on Sunday night and Monday as it moves slowly inland
and weakens. There remain timing and track differences among the
global models with the current forecast leaning toward the timing
of the ECMWF and GFS ensemble mean. It is expected to be colder
aloft than with the system for Friday night and Saturday. There
would be greater chances for convective precipitation with snow
levels a little lower, possibly down to around 5000 feet.
High temperatures will be cooler on Saturday, slightly warmer on
Sunday, with more cooling for Monday with Monday a few degrees
cooler than Saturday.
&&
.AVIATION...
091000Z...Patchy low clouds in coastal areas with bases near 800-
1200 feet msl will be intermittently producing cigs at coastal
airports through 16Z. Greater coverage of coastal clouds this
evening after 02Z, with bases closer to 1500-2000 feet msl, and
spreading farther inland overnight possibly as far as KONT.
Otherwise, scattered high clouds with unrestricted vis today and
tonight.
&&
.MARINE...
A large west swell will arrive today and generate combined seas of
10-14 feet in the outer coastal waters and 7-11 feet in the inner
coastal waters, which will be hazardous to small craft. A Small
Craft Advisory is in effect today through Thursday.
&&
.BEACHES...
A big west swell will generate high surf today through Thursday.
Check the High Surf Advisory and Surf Zone Forecast for details on
size and hazards. Swell and surf will lower Thursday. Another large
swell could produce high surf over the weekend.
&&
.SKYWARN...
Skywarn activation is not requested. However weather spotters are
encouraged to report significant weather conditions.
&&
.SGX WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...
CA...High Surf Advisory from 10 AM this morning to 10 PM PST Thursday
for Orange County Coastal Areas-San Diego County Coastal
Areas.
PZ...Small Craft Advisory for hazardous seas from 6 AM this morning
to 10 PM PST Thursday for Coastal Waters from San Mateo
Point to the Mexican Border and out to 30 nm-Waters from
San Mateo point to the Mexican Border Extending 30 to 60 nm
out including San Clemente Island.
&&
PUBLIC...17
AVIATION/MARINE/BEACHES...MMThe national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
2 high surf. Local standard time, as filed.
Huntington Beach lifeguards reported surf on 10ft at 1300 PST on January 9th.
Mission Beach lifeguards reported high surf of 10 ft at 1 pm on January 9th. A 64 year old man died trying to save his dogs from the high waves at nearby Ocean Beach around 1400 PST on January 9th.
As the offices recorded each death: direct deaths were caused by the weather itself, indirect ones by something it set in motion.
| Event | Date | Age | Sex | Where | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| High Surf, San Diego County Coastal Areas | 2019-01-09 | 64 | Male | In Water | Direct |
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in California in 2019Every state in 2019This day in weather historyWarnings in California, January 2019
NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database, compiled from the National Weather Service’s monthly Storm Data. Complete through 2026-06; NCEI adds each month about 75 days after it ends and revises past years a few times a year. Rebuilt 2026-09-24. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 804862, 804863.