California coastal cities scramble as colossal hurricane barrels through Pacific, emergency declared

California’s iconic coastal cities are bracing for another damaging hurricane this weekend as Hurricane Polo approaches, forcing at least one of them to declare an emergency.Long Beach and Newport Beach are attempting to rebuild sand barriers eroded by Hurricane Marie earlier this month before they’re hammered even more.The Long Beach City Council ratified City Manager Tom Modica’s emergency declaration Tuesday, allowing city crews more flexibility to fortify the city’s beautiful beaches.The biggest news, opinion and culture shaping California right now.

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Never miss a story But some are unsure they’ll be able to rebuild them in time for Hurricane Polo.“Everything is not built back up again, so it’s a little nerve-wracking for sure,” Long Beach resident Charley Snyder told NBC4.Long Beach Councilmember Kristina Duggan emphasized the enormous impact that Hurricane Marie had on the city earlier this month, noting the cyclone was far from “a normal coastal storm.”“What we saw during Hurricane Marie, that was not a normal coastal storm,” Duggan said.“In two days, portions of the Peninsula beach, it dropped by more than eight feet in height.”“That’s massive,” she added.She noted that it left “tens of millions of dollars in city infrastructure at risk and tens of millions of dollars more of private property under threat.”The city has mere hours to prepare for another devastating hurricane with projected four- to six-foot waves.Modica suggested he wouldn’t be surprised to see “downed power lines, downed trees, life and safety issues, as well as property damage.”About 33 miles to the southeast, Orange County’s Newport Beach is dealing with a similar crisis.“They’re working on shoring up our berm in advance of the potential that two hurricane swells could cause us more issue...