But residents and experts wonder how much longer it will be possible to live on the coast with rapid climate change. “We love living in these vulnerable places because they are beautiful,” Gallien said. “It comes down to what the risk tolerance is for a given property owner, a given community or a given municipality. Can engineers protect structures?” This is one of the most important questions that keeps officials, residents and experts awake. While the current damage to the California coast is historic in nature, it is not necessarily unprecedented. Coastal erosion has caused flooding along the PCH during previous El Niño, including in the mid-1980s and late 1990s. On the Long Beach Peninsula, more than a dozen homes collapsed into the ocean between Oct. 9 and 11 when the remnants of Tropical Storm Rachel churned up offshore waves up to 17 feet high. Eight structures spanning 13 homes were deemed too unsafe to enter. The balcony of one of the beachfront houses collapsed into the sea. Adam Amengual for NBC News Curtis said he loved waking up to the relaxing sound of the surf every morning. Its front door opened onto a popular boardwalk filled with locals and visitors enjoying the stunning views. When their apartment began to collapse, Curtis said he and his roommate rushed to push everything they could toward the back of the building and into the garage, which stayed dry and felt more stable. He escaped by climbing out his bedroom window with his dog Lux and headed to the other side of the street, which faces the bay, and this time evaded harm. A few days later, friends showed Curtis drone footage of his favorite couch floating in the ocean. “It’s just a couch,” he said. “I feel really bad for the neighbors.” Next door, a three-story single-family home sat empty this week. Its owners, a family of three, left on a cruise before the remnants of Tropical Storm Rachel destroyed their property. A giant crack snaked from the foundation to the roof, threatening to split the house in two. Curtis said he told them to just enjoy their vacation. They couldn’t do anything. The family could not be reached for comment.
