Large breaking waves pounded Central Coast beaches last week.
City officials in Pismo Beach are already in the process of repairing the damage the waves caused along the shore.
A powerful storm in the northern Pacific last week sent long-period swells toward the coast causing waves to reach heights between 15 to 20 feet — some even reaching up to 25 feet.
As a result, city officials say the combination of the tides and waves presented different challenges they haven’t quite seen before.
“We had some stairs that we lost. Some handrails going down to the stairs. Mostly all wooden stairs, so on either side of the Pier Plaza we have three sets of stairs total,” said Jorge Garcia, City of Pismo Beach city manager. “All three sustained damage. Unfortunately, we did lose our brand-new swing sets adjacent to the Addie Street lot. Those were installed within this last year.”
City officials are still assessing how to repair the Gull Cottage at the Chapman Estate after it was damaged by waves reaching beyond the shore.
“That will be a much larger more significant repair. We have to do an assessment of that," said Garcia. "We will be filing an insurance claim on that. But for now, we did temporary shoring to protect the structure to make sure we don’t lose it.”
The Department of Public Works in Pismo Beach is already working on repairs and it will take several weeks to complete.
Garcia says repairs will cost the city an estimated $55,000.
Some beachgoers say they were shocked to see how high the waves reached along the coastline.
“First thoughts were definitely not a good day to surf,” Daniel Prestridge, Santa Maria resident. “I saw that it took out some of the steps underneath Pismo, so hopefully they will get that fixed quickly.”
“It was insane. I’ve never seen anything like it here,” Roia Schock, visiting from Bakersfield. “It was crazy. It’s obviously not tsunami-style, but it was crazy to watch all the videos and watch it wash up all the way onto the streets.”
Garcia says local agencies across San Luis Obispo County are always willing to provide a helping hand during the state of an emergency.
“We coordinate routinely with [SLO County Office of Emergency Services] in order to make sure what’s going on not just in Pismo Beach but beyond, and then we make sure we’re connecting with all of our partners here whether that’s Grover Beach, Arroyo Grande, State Parks, Morro Bay, and figuring out how we can be a resource to each other,” said Garcia.
Garcia said that he recommends the public to visit READYSLO.org to keep up with the latest emergency resources the County of San Luis Obispo provides.
