Coastal Areas

One of Earth's largest creatures penetrates the surface amid a massive cloud of krill, its gaping mouth opening as if hinged, devouring a huge swallow of chowder. The tiny red crustaceans don't stand a chance. They're gone in a whooshing gulp that leaves passengers aboard the Condor Express spellbound. "This is unbelievable," said Ian Lloyd, 54, a visitor from London who was aboard with his wife and daughter. "I read when I was a little boy that blue whales were virtually extinct and now, 40 years later, here they are."

She doesn't remember the details of that horrific day one year ago, when she was nearly swallowed alive by a massive tsunami triggered by the largest earthquake in Japan's recorded history. About all Masako Unoura-Tanaka remembers is the cold. Her wet hands. And the words she screamed to her aunt as she slipped into the debris-choked waters while trying to climb to a nearby rooftop for safety: "I don't want to die here! Help me!" Unoura-Tanaka, a Los Angeles resident who was visiting Japan at the time, spoke Sunday in Little Tokyo in downtown Los Angeles, where more than 300 people gathered at three memorial events to burn incense, offer prayers and pay tribute to those who died and those still suffering from the tragedy in northeastern Japan.

Q: When I purchased my home I "inherited" a number of rose bushes with it. They suffer from constant, year-round mildew. I have pruned off the mildew-damaged foliage and sprayed regularly with Funginex and other sprays. Nothing works. Any suggestions? A: Mildew on roses can be almost a chronic problem in some areas of the Southland, especially some coastal areas such as yours. I suggest you plant roses that have demonstrated some resistance to mildew.

Japan has sent thousands of rescue workers to the northeastern coastal area devastated by Friday's earthquake, including officials attempting to prevent a meltdown at a nuclear reactor damaged in the quake. The death toll from the 8.9-magnitude quake and associated tsunami reached 680 Saturday and may reach 1,000, according to Japanese public broadcaster NHK. According to official figures, 642 people are missing and 1,426 injured. Photos: Scenes from the earthquake Officials in Miyagi prefecture said 10,000 residents, more than half the population of the town of Minami-Sanriku, couldn't be located after the earthquake, NHK reported.

President Bush on Tuesday declared a state of disaster in the coastal areas of Massachusetts that were struck by high winds and waves last week.

A tropical storm in the Gulf of Mexico showed signs of taking on hurricane strength, with the threat of swamping coastal areas that are already facing abnormally high tides, forecasters said. Tropical Storm Jerry, which was spawned by a tropical depression off the coast of Mexico, had top winds of 70 m.p.h. and was located about 580 miles from New Orleans, the National Hurricane Center in Coral Gables, Fla., said.

Orange County's unusually wet January is going to get even wetter. With more than 10 inches of rain already fallen on the county so far this month, weather forecasters Sunday predicted that a Pacific storm could bring as much as three inches more before the week is over.

Marine mammal "hot spots" in areas including Southern California's coastal waters may become off limits to testing of a type of Navy sonar linked to the deaths of whales under a plan announced this week by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. NOAA also called for creating a system for estimating the "comprehensive sound budget for the oceans," which could help reduce human sources of noise -- vessel traffic, sonar and construction activities -- that degrade the environment in which sound-sensitive species communicate.

From the California coast to North Carolina's Outer Banks, the nation's beach communities are marshaling their forces to oppose President Bush's push to slash federal funding for sand replenishment projects. In the White House's view, Washington can no longer afford to pump sand onto beaches that are doomed to erode again and again. But to some members of Congress -- Democrats and Republicans alike -- Bush's proposal to cut the money threatens to erode the economic base of coastal communities.

Weather forecasters predicted a wet weekend for Ventura County as a moisture-laden tropical storm began moving into the region from Hawaii Friday night. "It will be soggy, soggy, soggy," said James McCutcheon, a meteorologist with WeatherData Inc., which provides forecasts for The Times.

Saturday sunrise in Japan illuminated harrowing scenes of destruction across the island nation rattled by the strongest earthquake in its recorded history, with huge coastal swaths under water from tsunami waves and plumes of black smoke filling the skies from burning cars, homes and factories. Japanese media reported that at least 1,000 were believed dead, thousands more injured and tens of thousands displaced by the three-story wall of water that crushed their homes and brought much of the modern country to a standstill.

Tsunami waves have reached Hawaii, but the first waves hitting the state are only about a foot higher than usual, according to officials and local news reports. Officials had ordered an evacuation of Hawaii's coastal areas after the devastating 8.9 earthquake near Japan , which was expected to begin hitting the state at about 3 a.m. local time, or 5 a.m. Pacific time. Authorities warned of maximum wave heights of up to 6 feet. There have been no immediate reports of widespread damage.

The highest tides of the season will arrive in California this week in tandem with forecast rain, a powerful combination that could lead to coastal flooding. The so-called king tides occur twice a year when the gravitational forces of the sun, Earth and a full moon align. The ocean is expected to surge starting Wednesday and peak at its highest level Thursday morning. If the waves meet ocean-bound runoff from the expected rains, there could be flooding. Coastal communities, especially low-lying stretches of Orange County, San Diego and the San Francisco Bay Area, are readying pumps and sandbags and preparing to seal tide valves to keep the high water at bay, while environmental groups across the state plan to use the extreme tides to illustrate the potential impacts of rising sea levels.

The cost of home insurance is expected to rise in 2011 for the third straight year. Premiums are likely to rise an average of 2% to 3%, according to the Insurance Information Institute, with coastal areas seeing the biggest increases. Hurricane losses have been low in recent years, but damage from rain and winter weather and higher prices for materials to repair homes have driven up costs. In turn, insurance premiums have been creeping up. For 2010, the average premium for home insurance policies rose about 1% to $807, the industry trade group said.

Chinese officials said Monday that an oil slick in coastal waters has been cleaned up 10 days after a massive explosion sent an estimated 1,500 tons of crude into the Yellow Sea along the northeastern port city of Dalian. But beaches along Dalian's long shoreline remain closed indefinitely, with oil covering rocks and pebbles on the sand, and fishing has been banned until the end of the summer. Environmentalists say nearby bays are also polluted. "This is a victory," the city's mayor, Li Wancai, said Monday in an interview with the Dalian Daily News.

There is disagreement on the potential health hazards of the spilled oil polluting the Gulf of Mexico. Some scientists predict medical problems among workers involved in the cleanup and even the general public. Others expect safety precautions ordered by the federal government to protect cleanup workers and the public from harm. Concerns over the health effects of the spill grew this week as more workers and residents of the coastal areas reported symptoms such as headaches and breathing problems.

A ferocious storm pounded Northern California on Thursday, pushing floodwaters over the banks of the Russian and Napa rivers, forcing hundreds of residents to flee their homes for the second time in two months and closing dozens of state highways.

She doesn't remember the details of that horrific day one year ago, when she was nearly swallowed alive by a massive tsunami triggered by the largest earthquake in Japan's recorded history. About all Masako Unoura-Tanaka remembers is the cold. Her wet hands. And the words she screamed to her aunt as she slipped into the debris-choked waters while trying to climb to a nearby rooftop for safety: "I don't want to die here! Help me!" Unoura-Tanaka, a Los Angeles resident who was visiting Japan at the time, spoke Sunday in Little Tokyo in downtown Los Angeles, where more than 300 people gathered at three memorial events to burn incense, offer prayers and pay tribute to those who died and those still suffering from the tragedy in northeastern Japan.

The median price paid for a California home in March jumped 14.3% compared with the same month last year, reflecting a reduction in the number of foreclosure properties on the market and the comeback of higher-priced coastal areas. Perhaps nowhere was this more evident than in the San Francisco Bay Area, where the median increased 31% in March to $380,000 from a recent low hit the same month in 2009, San Diego research firm MDA DataQuick said. This week, the firm reported a 14% year-over-year jump in the Southland's median price to $285,000 in March.