The last week of 2023 left San Diego County beaches looking a bit different in 2024. Damage from high surf and storms can be seen from Imperial Beach to Del Mar — especially to our coastal piers.
The Ocean Beach Pier — closed already since October 2023 due to another bout of high surf — will remain closed through the storm season as workers reassess and determine what's next for the pier.
The City of San Diego has already been working on a new Ocean Beach Pier with several design options.
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Pacific Beach's Crystal Pier remains closed due to the high surf until the rocky waves calm down and damage can be assessed. By then, city workers will determine any potential need for repairs.
In La Jolla, catwalk atop the seawall protecting the Children’s Pool has been closed since several sections of the metal safety railing disappeared in the waves. A target completion date is unknown at this time, but the city has told NBC 7 they are attempting to repair the railing as soon as possible.
Meanwhile, visitors to Del Mar sat on a berm of beach sand on Monday. The rest washed away last week. To the south, Ocean Beach Pier lost a piling and several railings to the ocean.
Several folks at La Jolla Shores were reminiscing about the weekend's big waves on Tuesday.
“I saw spectacularly big and perfect surf. And a number of my friends were charging and getting some of the best surf I’ve seen here in maybe 10 years," said former surfer and San Diego resident, John Andrews.
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“It’s rare that it gets that big. I talked to one person who has been surfing in La Jolla since the 50’s and they were telling me that it’s the biggest swell that he’s seen since 1983," Andrews said.
Two San Diego residents already miss the Children's Pool.
"I really hope it gets repaired because for a lot of children it would be really cool for them to experience that," said San Diego resident Sandra Chard.
“It’s really an awesome experience to get to walk on it. Like, I said, you kind of just have to do it. So hopefully they do. Hopefully they come up with some money somehow," said Sandra Chard's grandmother, Carol Chard.
