The storm pattern in the Pacific is active. While we are not getting hit directly by much, the storms are putting energy into the water, and that energy has arrived this week in the form of large waves.
The waves will also combine with large tides, producing coastal flooding in some areas.
There is a High Surf Warning and Coastal Flood Warning for the Central Coast.
Waves 15-20 feet will have some max breaks to 25 feet through Saturday at 10 p.m. The Central Coast's high tides will be around 6 feet. The combination of both causes coastal flooding, among other risks.
The South Coast has a Coastal Flood Advisory for similar conditions but just not as much wave action as the Central Coast. There is also a High Surf Advisory for 7-12 foot breakers with some max sets of 15-20 feet. A tidal bulge of roughly 6 feet at high tide will cause some areas of coastal flood risk.
RELATED: 4 surfers rescued in Isla Vista, suffering exhaustion from high surf
While the worst of the wave and tide combo may have already occurred, there is still warning level potential into later Saturday. Please avoid flooded areas and surfing. Waves should be avoided unless you are an experienced surfer and willing to accept the risks.
Beyond the waves and tide, we still must talk about a significant system rolling into the Central Coast later Friday into Saturday. It is important to note that it will not rain much of Friday, with the activity arriving after sunset.
This is a deep trough of low pressure and rain could be in the .50-1.50” range with the SLO County North Coast seeing as much as 2”. The deep interior may only see amounts to .25”.
After the Friday-Saturday system, there is a system flying down the coast later Sunday PM into the very early hours Monday. While most of Sunday shouldn’t see rain this late, the "splash and dash" system looks to go through after the sun is down, so it may not be represented in icons on a forecast.
After that, another small and fast-moving "splash and dash" is possible on January 3 with more fast-moving systems possible after that.
