Hurricane Marie to send big swells, not landfall, to Malibu Play

Hurricane Marie is expected to send eight-foot swells to Malibu beaches this weekend, on top of seven-foot lunar high tides. But internet rumors warning of a hurricane hitting Southern California on Labor Day are flat wrong.

Waves from Hurricane Marie will hit Malibu beaches Friday through Monday, increasing in strength into Monday. But the hurricane itself is not going to change direction, make a 90-degree turn to the right, and head across cold water towards California.

The hurricane may spin off some rain toward us Sunday, Monday, and Tuesday, but as of now the National Weather Service is giving Malibu a very small chance of any major rain. A few computer runs show more than an inch of rain, but there's only a slight chance of that. There's a 5% chance of thunderstorms, probably on Sunday.

Overall, Southern California can expect a slight warm-up with more humid conditions along with periods of rain that could dampen the holiday weekend.

The big effect from the hurricane will be the big waves, probably on Monday. The large swell will start rising Friday, crest Monday, and last until about Tuesday. Five- to eight-foot waves are possible starting Sunday.

This coincides with a lunar high tide cycle that will aggravate this somewhat. The high tides will be seven feet or greater, hitting Sunday evening at about seven and Monday evening at about eight.