Current Events

A fierce storm barreling down the coast from the Gulf of Alaska was expected to bring increasing western swells upward of 11 feet to Ventura County’s coastline today, keeping fishing and boat enthusiasts at bay while continuing to bring surfers out in hordes.

The storm system brought scattered rain to eastern Ventura County for most of Thursday, with Simi Valley recording 0.2 inch, according to meteorologists. Piru Dam recorded 0.0008 inch.

Though some of the heavy surf Thursday was attributed to Tropical Storm Nora, which hit the coast of Baja California before plowing inland into Arizona, the bulk of the swells was pumped down from the northwest. The National Weather Service issued both heavy surf and small craft advisories through tonight.

“I’m not a meteorologist,” said Ventura Harbor Patrol Officer Paul Korber, “but I know this isn’t normal.”

At the harbor Thursday, swells averaged seven feet with occasional sets hitting eight or nine feet, the waves crashing over the breakwater. Though the harbor entrance remained passable, the daunting current forced most boaters to think twice.

“There’s hardly anybody going out today,” Korber said. “Most of them go to the entrance, take a look and think better.”

Harbor Patrol officers answered two calls of surfers in distress Thursday, but the surfers were safely on shore by the time officers arrived.

They also were forced to tow back to harbor a 26-foot sailboat that had been anchored close to the surf line off Ventura Pier.

The boat’s frayed anchor line was ready to break, Korber said. Unable to raise the anchor, officers cut the line. The boat’s owner was reveling in the massive waves with 12-foot faces at Surfers Point and unaware that harbor officers were struggling with his boat for 45 minutes. He later called Ventura police to report his boat stolen.

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Outside Channel Islands Harbor near Oxnard, Harbor Patrol Officer Gary Hirtensteiner said swells were averaging four to six feet at 15-second intervals, with surf along Silver Strand and Hollywood Beach averaging six to eight feet.

With the swells expected to increase, Hirtensteiner offered advice for surfers. “The best thing is not to go out. But if experienced surfers are going to go out, I’d say don’t exceed your abilities.”

Meanwhile, the onshore arrival of Tropical Storm Nora was all too obvious across Ventura County Thursday, as sticky, oppressive humidity reigned from Ojai to Oak Park.

“It feels like Florida, doesn’t it?” said Dolores Taylor, a senior hydrologist with Ventura County Flood Control.

While rain was a welcome sight in the county’s tinder-dry mountains, the rain did little to put a damper on the fire season.

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It would take at least two inches of steady rain to put an end to the fire season, county fire officials said.

National Weather Service meteorologist Rob Krohn said the light rains would taper off overnight, making for mostly sunny skies today, with humidity gradually decreasing through the weekend. Temperatures are expected to range from a low of 65 degrees along the coast to a high of 84 inland.

Correspondent Scott Steepleton contributed to this story.