Portion of Santa Cruz Wharf collapses, harbor damaged and parts of Capitola Village flooded amid huge swells

At least nine people have been rescued from the ocean in the past 24 hours as dangerously high waves pounded the Santa Cruz County shoreline, causing a large portion of the Santa Cruz Wharf to collapse and forcing police to evacuate Capitola Village and Rio Del Mar.

Lifeguards rescued two people Monday afternoon after a section of the Santa Cruz Wharf containing the Dolphin Restaurant and a public restroom collapsed into the ocean around 12:44 p.m. amid huge swells, the Santa Cruz Police Department said. A third person managed to get themselves to shore without assistance.

A man reportedly died at Sunset State Beach in Watsonville after being pinned beneath some debris by a large wave.

Tony Elliot, Santa Cruz parks and recreation director, said the approximately 150 feet of wharf that collapsed had long been closed to the public as part of the damage sustained during the past two winters. 

The Santa Cruz Wharf was under construction at the time of the collapse. The three people who fell into the water were two engineers and a project manager who were inspecting the end of the wharf. All three were rescued and sustained “very minor injuries,” Elliot told a news conference Monday afternoon. 

Santa Cruz Fire Chief Rob Oatey said the department deployed a drone to assess damage and look for more victims, and confirmed that all the people who fell into the water had been rescued.

Elliot added that the wharf was evacuated shortly after the collapse and will remain closed indefinitely “until we can assess the structure and figure out next steps.” Main, Cowell and Seabright State beaches were also closed to public access Monday because of a large amount of debris washing ashore.

Evacuations, flooding in Capitola Village

In Capitola, police shut down the wharf, evacuated the Capitola Venetian Hotel and issued an evacuation order for much of Capitola Village as high waves flooded the area.

The Santa Cruz Sheriff’s Office issued an evacuation order for coastal Rio Del Mar, including the Beach Drive and Las Olas areas because of forecasts showing the potential for large swells and high tides. “Residents in this zone should evacuate immediately,” the sheriff’s office said on Facebook. Sections of East Cliff Drive were closed for flooding, along with Marina Avenue near Seacliff State Beach in Aptos.

Three surfers were rescued in Capitola, two on Monday and another on Sunday, said the city’s police chief, Sarah Ryan. One surfer was assisted back from a dangerous area in the ocean, and was able to paddle back to shore by himself. The second surfer lost his board, said Ryan, and had to be picked up by boat and taken into the harbor. She said that all three were unharmed.

“We’re really keeping an eye on the surf and we want to be prepared for flooding in the village,” said Ryan, adding that the department has contacted residents in the low-lying areas of the village and made sure to staff up so that it can assist wherever needed.

National Weather Service meteorologist Brayden Murdock said that the agency has seen some 25-foot breaking waves, with the biggest impacts in the Capitola area. He said that the waves are the result of a “westerly swell,” which leaves the Santa Cruz shoreline a bit more exposed to impacts than usual.

“Because there’s so much energy in the ocean right now, there is a lot of sea spray, and it’s hard to keep track of people if they’re out and about,” he said. “So rescues are going to be difficult because of the reduced visibility. It’s particularly dangerous to be out near the water today.”

Central Fire Chief Jason Nee said his staff has responded to several of the local rescues starting Sunday evening and he advises that people stay away from the ocean during the hazardous weather.

“There is no need to go by the ocean to see these big waves,” he said. “They’re very dangerous. It’s going to put yourself or your family members at risk. Do not ever turn your back to the ocean. If you can see it, you’re probably too close.”

The fire department had recorded at least 11 water rescues since Sunday afternoon, eight of them on Monday. Most were in the areas of East Cliff Drive and the Capitola area.

Photo gallery: High waves batter Santa Cruz County

Santa Cruz Mayor Fred Keeley told Monday’s news conference that the wharf lost a number of pilings which were still in the ocean and continued to pose a serious threat to personal safety.

“We’re asking people not to be in the water, not to be on the beach, and not to have their vehicles, boats or other devices out in the water,” he said. “These are massive pilings that weigh hundreds and hundreds of pounds apiece and are being driven by the Pacific Ocean.”

City Manager Matt Huffaker said city officials had discussed whether to close the wharf entirely even before the collapse, but eventually decided that it was safe to keep open with “constant monitoring.”

“This was another example of how, despite our best predictions, mother nature can surprise us,” he said.

Keeley added that the structural integrity of the rest of the wharf is superior to the section that collapsed, as it still has asphalt, pilings and reinforced structures that had been removed from the end of the wharf. But he is “very concerned” that the wharf could sustain further damage.

‘Carnage’ at Santa Cruz Harbor

It was “pretty much carnage” Monday at the Santa Cruz Small Craft Harbor, said William Shady, a boat owner and captain.

“I’m just kind of standing and watching,” he said. “Not going out there because even though it’s my life, it’s not worth my life.”

Shady said that he was on his boat when some big swells began to hit: “It felt like I was underway, going from Santa Cruz to San Francisco and trying to sleep.” He added that he is cautiously optimistic that his boat will weather the storm. “Well, so far so good. I’m hopeful. It’s a big strong boat, it’s tied off with new mooring lines, and I take good care of my boat,” he said.

Dafna Brown and her husband, Tom, were not so lucky. Their boat moored at the harbor was jostled by the powerful waves and was pushed up onto the dock. They were struggling to get their boat back into the water in between incoming swells.

“We’re trying to figure out how to lift the boat off the dock and time it perfectly so we’ll be able to get it off without hitting and doing more damage to other people’s boats and our boat,” Dafna Brown said.

She said the couple had come to the boat on Sunday to retie their lines and make sure it was stable, but the significant swells still managed to push the boat upwards.

“I talked to someone who saw it and she said the whole harbor lifted up at the same time,” Tom Brown said.

‘This is very, very sad’

Daniel Spilman was eating his lunch Monday around 12:30 p.m. in his car at the parking lot above Seabright State Beach when he noticed what looked like a floating building at the end of the wharf.

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Spilman thinks, based on how close it was to the wharf, that he saw it maybe a minute after the portion of the wharf collapsed into the water. 

“I’m looking out towards the wharf and it looks like there’s like a boat bobbing in the water at the end of the wharf,” he said. “I’m like, that looks really strange and there’s these big waves coming in, they lift it up, and I thought, ‘That looks more like a building than it does a boat and then I could start seeing the debris field.” 

He called his wife and told her what he was seeing and walked out to the overlook adjacent to where the San Lorenzo River empties out into the ocean. Spilman estimates it took more than 20 minutes or so for the debris, including what appeared to be a restroom building, to float to the river mouth. 

“This is really unfortunate for Santa Cruz,” he said. 

Spilman said when he first noticed the wharf collapse he was the only one parked at the parking lot. But after word spread of the collapse, curious residents began to walk, drive and bike to the area. For a couple of hours, about 70 to 100 people were walking along the cliff above Seabright Beach and along the beach watching as the debris floated to shore. 

After about 2:30 p.m., sheriff’s deputies, Santa Cruz police officers and State Parks personnel closed access to the beach and restricted access to a grassy overlook adjacent to the San Lorenzo River. 

Michelle Close said she and her husband were walking on Seabright Beach and taking photos of the immense waves breaking on the jetty and Walton Lighthouse. They then turned the other direction and her husband looked out toward the wharf when he noticed the collapse. 

“The wharf had already collapsed, and you can see a crane literally sink,” she said. “We started seeing the lampposts. You could still see some of the benches, but everything was falling apart.” 

Close and her husband walked toward the river mouth and saw the bathroom building wash to shore. “This is very, very sad,” she said. 

The National Weather Service’s Murdock said that the swell will likely ease overnight Monday and the weather agency will likely cancel its coastal flood warning by noon on Tuesday. A high surf warning will likely remain in effect until 6 p.m. tomorrow. Murdock urged not just surfers to stay away from the ocean, but also warned those trying to get video of the high surf to refrain from doing so.

“Not only are you putting yourself at risk, but you’re putting the people that have to rescue you at risk as well,” he said. “With all this poor visibility, it might not be a sure thing that you get assistance.”

Murdock said that there will be rain throughout the week, but most will be mild. The Santa Cruz Mountains will get about three-quarters of an inch of rain while lower elevations can expect about a half-inch. More rain is on the way Thursday and Friday, totaling another inch in the mountains and about three-quarters of an inch at lower elevations.

Huffaker said that every year, city forecasts seem to underestimate the severity of coastal damage, despite substantial effort to make them as accurate as possible.

“Our coastline is wild, it’s unpredictable, and we continue to see that winter season over winter season,” he said. “This is just a reminder that we need to continue to stay vigilant.”

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