Evacuations in the Peninsula neighborhood of Long Beach, where pounding surf over the long weekend damaged a seawall and historic boardwalk and flooded residential streets, were lifted on Wednesday morning, Sept. 9, after building inspectors finished their assessment of homes.
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Of the structures — which collectively contained 24 homes — inspected following the recent storms and flooding, only one was yellow-tagged, meaning those who live there can enter the building to recover essential belongings but can’t stay there.
None of the structures in the Peninsula were red-tagged, which would have marked them as unsafe to enter.
City officials, starting mid-morning on Wednesday, were reaching out to evacuated residents to let them know they could return to their homes, Long Beach Fire Capt. Jack Crabtree said.
The segment of the approximately 100-year-old boardwalk that runs between the seawall and the ocean and adjacent neighborhood from 63rd Place to 68th Place will remain closed to the public until repairs are completed, officials said.
Heavy surf brought in part by Hurricane Marie pounded the Peninsula on Sunday and Monday.
At the height of the storm, waves slammed the seawall, sending water flying above nearby structures or over the well, sweeping sand from the beach and nearby berms and debris from the damaged seawall and boardwalk into residential streets.
Based on the current forecast, officials believe the heaviest surf from the storm has passed. Normal high tides — which still require fortified sand berms — have returned, officials said.
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“The worst is behind us,” Capt. Crabtree said. “Future high tides under this storm are expected to be less impactful.”
The peninsula was quiet on Wednesday morning, with few residents or visitors out and about.
A day earlier, on Tuesday morning, many residents had joined work crews in cleaning up the mud and debris left by the storm, while joggers and dog walkers had taken advantage of a slightly overcast morning weather to see the lingering impact of the storm first hand.
With the sun shining and the heat already intense by 9 a.m., fewer joggers or dog walkers were out on Wednesday morning. But the streets were noticeably cleaner, with much of the mud, debris and sand in the roadways removed.
Several streets on the beach side of the peninsula where the flooding was most intense were still blocked by caution tape late Wednesday morning, though they were accessible by foot.
The damaged portion of the boardwalk remained blocked off by caution tape. Unlike a day prior, when many people stepped over or under the tape, few were on the boardwalk early Wednesday. Officials have not given an estimate as to when the boardwalk will officially reopen.
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Staff writer Nathaniel Percy contributed to this report.