SANTA CRUZ, California — Two people were rescued when an under-construction California pier partially collapsed and fell into the ocean Monday, as the state’s central coast was battered by heavy surf from a major storm that was expected to bring hurricane force winds to the seas off the Pacific Northwest bring, authorities said.
Residents were warned to stay away from low-lying areas near the beaches around the Santa Cruz Wharf, about 70 miles (112 kilometers) south of San Francisco, as the storm quickly gained strength.
“You are risking your life and the lives of the people who should be trying to save you by getting in or too close to the water,” the Bay Area office of the National Weather Service said on the social platform X.
Lifeguards rescued two people from the water and a third person was able to swim to safety, Santa Cruz Fire Department officials said. No one was seriously injured, Mayor Fred Keeley said.
The mayor said the collapsed part of the wharf had been damaged over time. The structure was in the midst of a $4 million renovation after devastating storms last winter.
Tony Elliot, the head of Santa Cruz Parks & The Recreation Department estimated that about 150 feet of the end of the dock fell into the water around 12:45 p.m. It was immediately evacuated and will remain closed indefinitely.
Some of the dock’s pilings are still in the ocean and still pose a “serious, serious hazard” to boats, the mayor said. Each pole weighs hundreds of kilos and is pushed by powerful waves.
Gov. Gavin Newsom has been notified and the state Office of Emergency Services is coordinating with local officials, his office said.
Forecasters warned that storm surges will continue to increase throughout the day.
“We expect what is coming our way to be more serious than what happened this morning,” the mayor said.
Ocean swells along California’s central coast could reach 26 feet (8 meters) as the Pacific storm gains strength Monday, the weather service said.
“A rapidly developing storm will bring hurricane-force winds to areas well offshore of the Pacific Northwest this evening,” the weather service’s Ocean Prediction Center said at X. Winds off the coasts of Oregon and Washington could peak near 130 km per hour and the seas will build up. more than 30 feet (9.1 meters), forecasters said.
The demolished end of the pier had been shut down during renovation work. The section, which included public toilets and the closed Dolphin restaurant, drifted about half a mile (0.8 kilometers) along the coast and wedged itself at the bottom of the San Lorenzo River.
Those who fell into the water were two engineers and a project manager who were inspecting the end of the wharf, officials said. There were no civilians around.
Building inspectors now looked at the rest of the Santa Cruz Wharf’s structural integrity.
Monday’s collapse came about a year after the Seacliff State Beach pier just offshore was battered beyond repair by a major winter storm.
___ Dazio reported from Los Angeles.