California lifeguards are rescuing thousands during high surf, heat waves this summer

Alex Wigglesworth, Los Angeles Times on Jul 28, 2026

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LOS ANGELES — As millions of visitors flocked to the coast for a reprieve from the heat, lifeguards across California have sprung into action, making thousands of rescues over the last few days, some of which have gone viral on social media.

In Los Angeles County, lifeguards performed nearly 2,000 ocean rescues over the weekend, according to a social media post.

At Seabright State Beach in Santa Cruz County, a lifeguard was captured on video dragging a boy out of the water in a harrowing rescue.

And in San Diego County, local news reports showed a teen was injured over the weekend attempting a dramatic jump off Sunset Cliffs, when he fell short of the water and smacked into the terrain below him before falling into the ocean.

"With a Heat Advisory continuing across the Southland and a Southern Hemisphere swell expected to keep surf elevated throughout the week, we encourage everyone to take proper precaution," Los Angeles County's lifeguard division said on social media.

Hurricane Genevieve, which is whipping up the Pacific Ocean about 500 miles off the southern tip of Baja California, will send big waves rolling toward beaches this week, creating hazardous swimming conditions, the National Weather Service says.

Now a Category 4 hurricane and moving northwest with sustained winds of about 155 mph, Genevieve is expected to generate up to 11-foot swells by Wednesday afternoon along San Diego County beaches that face south and southwest.

In Orange County, waves could reach 10 feet at the Wedge in Newport Beach through Friday, according to a forecast from Surfline.

The hurricane will bring heavy surf and strong rip currents along L.A. County beaches, the National Weather Service says.

The summer has already been a busy one along the coast. Last month, lifeguards in Newport Beach rescued hundreds of swimmers during a weekend heat wave. It was during that heat wave that a 5-year-old girl was swept away farther south in Laguna Beach and drowned.

Temperatures are expected to stay warm through the week and dial up again into the weekend.

By Saturday, temperatures across the Southland will be 10 to 15 degrees above normal, according to the weather service. Forecasters expect the valleys to reach 100 to 110 degrees, the lower mountain and far interior areas to reach 105 to 112 degrees and the beaches to be in the 80s. More heat advisories will almost certainly be in place.

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(Times staff writer Ian James contributed to this report.)

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