L.A. Beaches Face High Surf and Rip Currents Over Labor Day, County Says

Hurricane Marie stays well offshore, but forecasters expect its swell on south-facing shores, with rain and thunderstorms possible.

Dangerous rip currents, high surf and the chance of coastal flooding are in the forecast for Los Angeles County beaches over the Labor Day weekend. The hazards trace to Hurricane Marie, which is tracking well away from Southern California, county officials said in an advisory issued September 4, 2026, citing the National Weather Service's Los Angeles/Oxnard office. South-facing shores are the ones singled out.

That's the weekend the coolers come out. A family driving down to a south-facing beach Saturday morning is heading straight at the stretch of coast the forecast flags, and the same weekend carries a moderate chance of light rain and isolated thunderstorms over the drive home.

The county's advisory doesn't put a number on the surf.

What it does give is a short list for the water. Ask the nearest lifeguard about the day's conditions before you go in. Swim or surf in front of an open tower, never alone, and stay within what you can actually do. Keep your distance from piers, and stay off rocks and jetties. Don't turn your back on the ocean.

There's a water-quality line in there too: stay out of the surf near storm drains, and near any stretch flagged under the Ocean Water Use Warnings posted by the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health.

The rain guidance is where the county gets specific with numbers. Six inches of moving water is enough to knock an adult down and carry them off. At 18 to 24 inches, the advisory says, most large SUVs, vans and trucks go with it. The county's phrasing for the whole idea is the old one: “Turn around, don't drown!”

So skip flooded roadways, and don't walk or drive into moving water at all. Stay clear of flood control channels, catch basins, canyons and natural waterways when it's raining hard. If water traps you in your car, the county says to stay in it if you can and call 9-1-1.

Downed power lines get their own distance: at least 100 feet, and a call to 9-1-1 to report them. Wet roads are the mundane version of the same problem, which is why the advisory bothers to mention tires, brakes and wiper blades before you leave the driveway.

Two items about your car and one about the ocean, and they're the same weekend.

Emergency alerts for your address are set up at alert.lacounty.gov, preparedness material sits at ready.lacounty.gov, and active incidents are posted at lacounty.gov/emergency. Labor Day is Monday, September 7, 2026 — the swell doesn't wait for the holiday to end.

Source: lacounty.gov, retrieved September 5, 2026.