"All of those have become unlivable": Rachel's surf reaches Long Beach's beachfront homes
Sid Garcia reports from 66th Place, where some homes are red-tagged, the city is rebuilding berms and sandbags are still keeping the street dry.
Why this story? The video opened at a pace of 885,857 views a day, 22 times a normal first day on this channel (39,425).
Aerial view shows extent of destruction for homes along Long Beach coast
Things we can learn from the video
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- 0:09Helicopter footage shows waves striking beachfront homes and damaged boardwalk structures in Long Beach.
- 0:31Sid Garcia, at 66th Place, shows waves hitting retaining barriers and sandbags.
- 1:03The city is repairing berms and sea walls, and several damaged homes have been red-tagged.
- 1:44Resident VR Venkatraman describes the earlier storm and his effort to protect the sea wall.
- 2:15More aerial views show flooded patios and destroyed wooden decking below the houses.
- 2:57Sandbags have kept the water from flooding the street so far.
From the AIR7 helicopter, the line between beach and backyard is gone. Waves break straight into beachfront properties in Long Beach, patios sit under water, and the wooden decking beneath several homes has been torn apart. The surf, left over from Tropical Storm Rachel, had not let up by the time ABC7 went live again.
As we reported here, crews had been bringing in heavy equipment to shield the Alamitos Peninsula. This report shows what that fight has cost so far. Standing on 66th Place, reporter Sid Garcia watches waves hit retaining barriers and sandbags. He says the city is repairing berms and sea walls, and that several damaged homes have been red-tagged.
Resident VR Venkatraman explains his own aim: "So, my goal is to just mitigate the damage in terms of protecting the sea wall." Looking at the houses around him, he puts it more plainly: "All of those have become unlivable."
The report drew about 465,000 views in its first eight hours, far beyond the station's usual start for a regular-length video. A follow-up from the peninsula with nearly the same title went up the next day. Along the coast, the station also reported cracks in a bluff at Crystal Cove State Park that closed a southbound lane of PCH. Two Shorts started fast as well, one on the Rams' Alaric Jackson and an NFL review of a punch, the other on the man killed at Six Flags Over Georgia.
Much of the comment section debates whether homes belong this close to the water at all. Several viewers single out the wooden sea wall.
Garcia closes with one line of defense still holding: so far, the sandbags have kept the water out of the street.
Published on Trari
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What viewers say
I think we do underestimate how strong and powerful the water body is particular the ocean 😮
@ericnana4976See it on YouTubeThe sea giveth, and the sea taketh away. In this case, the sea tooketh.
@mrpuddingsnacksSee it on YouTubeAye, the sea is angry these days.
@terencem8795See it on YouTube
Public comments from the video's page on YouTube
- Channel
- ABC7
- Subscribers
- 2,980,000
- Channel views, last 7 days
- 13,790,672
- Channel views, pace per day
- 2,224,062 (on a normal day: 2,016,158)
- Video published
- October 13, 2026
- Video views so far
- 465,521 (less than a day online)
- Video views, pace per day
- 885,857
The numbers
This was a busy day for a station that is used to big audiences, and the Long Beach report drew most of the attention.
💡 Test your knowledge
Which retired ocean liner is permanently docked in Long Beach?
The Cunard liner RMS Queen Mary has been moored in Long Beach since 1967, where it serves as a hotel and attraction.



