Long Beach residents have been left devastated after powerful waves from Tropical Storm Rachel battered their multimillion-dollar beachfront homes, destroying properties, forcing families to evacuate and ripping apart a century-old boardwalk as yet another storm slammed Southern California.
asserted
storm → leave → California
The destruction unfolded along the city’s Alamitos Peninsula, where massive waves tore through wooden sections of the historic waterfront boardwalk, sending seawater rushing into homes and streets.
asserted
seawater → unfold → homes
At least eight buildings representing 13 addresses were red-tagged as unsafe to enter, while another was yellow-tagged, allowing residents limited access to retrieve their belongings, according to Long Beach Mayor Rex Richardson.
uncertain
another → represent → Richardson
For some residents, the storm has meant watching their dream homes get swallowed by the ocean.
asserted
homes → mean → ocean
Natalie Cabrera, 59, who has lived on the peninsula for just a year and a half, and rents a beachfront bungalow said she was devastated after the storm caused water damage to her home’s foundation.
“I don’t want to leave.
asserted
I → live → foundation
This was my dream,” Cabrera said.
asserted
Cabrera → say → ?
Cabrera described how the relentless waves battered her property, sending water underneath the building and damaging everything inside.
asserted
waves → describe → everything
Because the ocean just kept hitting and hitting my home, and the water went underneath,” she said.
asserted
she → keep → home
“Water didn’t come through my front door.
asserted
Water → come → door
It came up from the ground.”
asserted
It → come → ground
Cabrera said neighbors who had lived in the area for decades had never witnessed anything like it.
asserted
who → say → it
“My other neighbor’s been here 30 years, and never, ever have they seen this.
asserted
they → see → this
So I’m a newbie to the neighborhood.
asserted
I → ’m → neighborhood
And I’m just devastated to have to leave,” she said.
asserted
she → ’m → ?
Cabrera said she was going to move to Ontario, where her son and daughter-in-law have a home.
asserted
son → say → home
“That’s where I grew up.
asserted
I → ’ → ?
So I guess I’m just going to have to go back,” she said.
asserted
she → guess → ?
Despite the devastation, Cabrera said she was grateful that her family and neighbors were safe and recalled how complete strangers rushed to help protect her property.
asserted
strangers → say → property
“Everybody just came together, total strangers.
asserted
Everybody → come → ?
He saw the devastation of the waves just rushing through my front door, and he came.
asserted
he → see → door
“As fast as the water came, they’re shoveling the sand out.”
asserted
they → come → sand
Robert Wells, 80, whose family has owned a summer home on the peninsula since 1962, said he had never witnessed such severe destruction.
asserted
he → own → destruction
“It’s never happened like this before,” Wells said.
asserted
Wells → happen → this
“Yesterday, and this morning, the water came right over here.
asserted
water → come → ?
Wells blamed the city’s efforts to protect beachfront properties, arguing that a sand berm constructed to hold back the ocean actually made the damage worse.
asserted
damage → blame → ocean
“There are more greater chances than not that if they hadn’t put that berm there, that the damage would be minor.
asserted
damage → be → berm
And now the damage is major,” he said.
asserted
he → say → ?
“If they had done nothing, it would have been better.
asserted
it → do → nothing
They wouldn’t have all this damage.”
asserted
They → have → damage
Wells also claimed that residents were preparing legal action against the city.
asserted
residents → claim → city
“There is a class action lawsuit forming against the city of Long Beach,” he said.
asserted
he → be → Beach
Meanwhile, John Fernando, who has lived on the peninsula for more than a decade, said he evacuated his property as the tide began rising.
asserted
tide → live → property
“I left when the high tide started building up around 9am this morning,” Fernando said.
asserted
Fernando → leave → am
He described how the powerful ocean waves had stripped away layers of sand, exposing structures that had previously been buried beneath the beach.
asserted
that → describe → beach
“No one’s ever seen the rocks and the extra stakes in the sand until now when the ocean just ripped it out,” he said.
asserted
he → see → it
Fernando said residents had been working around the clock to protect their homes and help neighbors whose properties had suffered more extensive damage.
asserted
properties → say → damage
“We’re all in this together.
asserted
We → ’re → this
We’ve all been protecting our own properties.
asserted
We → protect → properties
And then when we could provide support, we’d help each other out at the same time.
uncertain
we → provide → time
This is definitely like 100% a group effort,” he said.
asserted
he → say → ?
…and 26 more, not listed.
The Aporia
