Coast Guard urges caution ahead of heavy weather conditions along California coast

A Coast Guard Station Humboldt Bay 47-foot Motor Lifeboat conducting surf training in heavy weather.

The Coast Guard encourages mariners to prepare for heavy sea conditions and high winds, which are expected to impact the California region over the next few days.

United States Coast Guard The San Francisco Bay Area is expected to experience gale-force winds up to 40 knots and seas up to 11 feet.

The Los Angeles area is expected to experience winds up to 35 knots and seas up to 9 feet.

"We encourage boaters to avoid the incoming severe weather if possible," said Lt. Cmdr. John Suckow, Coast Guard Sector Los Angeles-Long Beach incident management division chief. "Mariners who need to get underway in these conditions should make sure they check all their survival and safety equipment before going out."

Mariners and beachgoers are encouraged to take the following precautions to protect themselves and their vessels:

· Monitor the weather and heed all marine warnings

· Double-check mooring lines when securing boats and take precautions for items stored loosely aboard

· Secure all paddle craft so they do not end up in the water and cause a false distress

· Recreational boaters, personal watercraft and paddle craft users are advised to stay off the water due to hazardous sea conditions

· Swimmers, surfers and wind surfers are urged to stay out of the water during this period of heavy weather due to increased risk of drowning from rip currents and sneaker waves

· If mariners get underway, they should create a float plan and send it to friends and families before getting underway, which consists of a description of the vessel, the number of people aboard, the destination and the expected return time.

· Always wear a proper life jacket when on the water and use VHF-FM channel 16 to notify rescuers in the event of an emergency

For additional information regarding the weather, visit the National Weather Service.