Living on the Hill: the practical page

Right now · as of Mon Nov 2

How much rain fell. Most of the storm's rain fell on the Peninsula between early Saturday evening and about 3:45 am Sunday. The running totals at two LA County Public Works rain gauges rose about 0.73 inch at Rolling Hills Fire Station 56 and about 0.85 inch at Point Vicente Lighthouse, by our subtraction of the preliminary readings the NWS relays (before the storm; Sunday evening). Volunteer CoCoRaHS observers just north of the Peninsula reported 0.51 inch at a south Redondo Beach station and 0.49 and 0.55 inch at two Torrance stations for the 24 hours ending at 7 or 8 am Sunday. The NWS's preliminary two-day totals through Sunday afternoon were 0.66 inch at LAX, 0.42 inch at Hawthorne and 0.38 inch at Long Beach airport (NWS rainfall summary). Forecasters said the showery storm produced widely varying amounts (NWS discussion, 9:34 am Sunday).

A dry, warming week. The NWS forecast for the Palos Verdes Hills updated at 4:13 pm Monday mentioned no rain through Monday, Nov 9: a sunny, then partly cloudy Election Day with highs in the mid 60s to around 70 and west winds around 15 mph in the afternoon; highs around 70 Wednesday, in the mid 70s Thursday and the mid to upper 70s Friday; and sunny skies with highs in the lower 80s on Saturday and Sunday, Nov 7 and 8. Forecasters expect the warmest, windiest weather Friday through Sunday, with Santa Ana winds reaching more of the region but mostly staying just below advisory strength; they wrote that coastal areas may need heat advisories Saturday and Sunday (NWS discussion, 4:15 pm Monday). As of Monday evening, no NWS alert was in effect for the Palos Verdes Hills forecast zone (NWS alerts).

Surf and tides. On Sunday morning the NWS issued a Beach Hazards Statement for the LA County beaches, a zone that includes the Peninsula's shoreline, in effect until 6 pm Monday, Nov 2. It warns of dangerous rip currents and breaking waves, possible minor flooding at high tide with water running over normally dry sand onto lower parking lots or paths, and possible moderate beach erosion; the NWS surf forecast called for surf of 3 to 6 feet and a high rip-current risk through Monday and again Tuesday. The NWS Beach Hazards Statement for the LA County beaches ended at 6 pm Monday, Nov 2, but the surf forecast issued Monday afternoon still called for a high rip-current risk through Wednesday, Nov 4, with surf of 3 to 5 feet through Tuesday and 3 to 6 feet Wednesday. A Small Craft Advisory the NWS issued Monday for hazardous seas covers the inner coastal waters from Point Mugu to San Mateo Point, 1 pm Tuesday, Nov 3, to 4 am Wednesday, Nov 4. As of Sunday, Nov 1, the NWS said more tidal flooding is likely into the weekend of Nov 7 and 8, with tides reaching 7 feet as early as Friday, Nov 6, and peaking at 7.0 to 7.8 feet over that weekend into early the week of Nov 9, figures it says are adjusted for recently observed tides (NWS statement, 10:29 am Sunday); as of Monday evening it had issued no coastal flood watch or advisory for those days. NOAA's astronomical predictions for its Los Angeles station put the morning high tides at 6.0 feet on Friday, Nov 6 (6:55 am), 6.2 feet on Saturday, Nov 7 (7:21 am), 6.3 feet on Sunday, Nov 8 (7:47 am), 6.3 feet on Monday, Nov 9 (8:12 am) and 6.2 feet on Tuesday, Nov 10 (8:38 am). The Coastal Flood Advisory that ran through Friday, Oct 30, expired at 2 pm that day (NWS).

Ocean water. On Saturday, Oct 31, LA County Public Health declared a rain advisory for all county beaches (county notice). On Monday, Nov 2, the county extended the advisory to at least 10 am Wednesday, Nov 4, and said it may be extended again depending on further rainfall (county notice; beach page). The county advises staying out of the water for at least 72 hours after significant rain, especially near flowing storm drains, creeks and rivers. Its Oct 30 bacteria warning listed Ballona Creek at Dockweiler State Beach, Mother's Beach in Marina del Rey and the Santa Monica Pier, and no Peninsula beach (county; recorded hotline 1-800-525-5662).

The Palos Verdes Nature Preserve reopened Monday, Nov 2, along with Abalone Cove Park, after the weekend rain closure, according to an RPV notice. The city says some temporary trail closures may remain; the long-standing landslide closures, including the area east of Inspiration Point and the Abalone Cove and Sacred Cove beaches, continue. Check RPV's trail conditions page before a hike.

Sandbags. RPV's Oct 28 administrative report says empty sandbags are free to residents at the City Hall reception desk, with a self-service filling station at the Ken Dyda Civic Center; the limit is 10 per household with proof of residency, and bring a shovel. LA County Public Works' sandbag map lists bags at County Fire Stations 53 (6124 PV Drive South) and 83 (83 Miraleste Plaza), and sand and bags at Stations 56 (12 Crest Road West, Rolling Hills) and 106 (27413 Indian Peak Road, RHE) and at PVE City Hall (340 PV Drive West). Rolling Hills' storm page says bags are also occasionally available in the RHCA parking lot. Supplies vary, so call ahead.

Landslide area. As of Monday evening, RPV had posted no storm update on its land-movement page, which said no emergency advisories, warnings or orders were in effect in the landslide area. The newest update there, from Oct 28, before this storm, said early-October surveys put the average rate in the still-moving areas at 1.05 inches a week, up 7.6% since August, an increase the city's geologist attributed largely to erosion at the toe of the slide from wave action caused by extreme southerly swells; the complex was moving about 30% slower than a year earlier.

Landslide grants go to the RPV council Wednesday. At its Wednesday, Nov 4 meeting (7 pm, McTaggart Hall at Hesse Park, and on Zoom), the Rancho Palos Verdes council is scheduled to consider staff's recommendations. Among them: accept $55.96 million in federal grants (about $54 million to buy 27 residential properties in the landslide area and cover management costs, and $1.94 million to connect five dewatering wells to the power grid), and have Geo-Logic Associates, not Geosyntec Consultants, design the two remaining remediation projects. Late correspondence posted Monday includes objections from two owners on the so-called Monks lots who say their homes are red-tagged and that the city has deemed the Monks lot homes ineligible for the buyout program. Nothing is decided until the vote (our summary).