00:02El Nino is warming Southern California's ocean, and beachgoers are getting stung in record numbers.
00:09Experts say the warmer water is drawing more stingrays north from Baja and keeping them near the coast longer.
00:15At Seal Beach, nicknamed Ray Bay, the animals gather in warm, shallow water right where people walk.
00:24Southern California lifeguards treat 10,000 people for stingray injuries a year.
00:28This year is probably going to be a bumper crop, so we're expecting even higher numbers.
00:33It's going to get bad. There's a lot of rays out.
00:35Dr. Chris Lowe with Cal State Long Beach's Shark Lab says marine heat waves are creating ideal conditions for stingrays.
00:42I've been hit quite a few times, at least eight times in the last five years.
00:45The sting can feel like an electric shock.
00:48And they get startled, and that's how they protect themselves.
00:52El Nino could keep Southern California's ocean warmer and stingray numbers elevated in the months ahead.
00:58They're buried in the sand.
00:59The best defense is simple. Don't lift and step.
01:02That is bad.
01:03Slide your feet across the sand.
01:05This is their home, and we're guests. Nobody likes being stepped on, so do the stingray shuffle.
01:10I'm Kai Beach with AccuWeather.
01:13I'm Kai-Cuatar.
01:13Thank you, sir.
01:13Let me takeien!
01:14Thank you, sir.
01:14I'll beÙ‘on the say-to- ..
01:15Do you have any certeza value on the show.
