A portion of a pier in northern California’s Santa Cruz collapsed into the Pacific Ocean on Monday, sending three city workers into the sea after high surf slammed the coast.
The Wharf, a public pier, is home to several restaurants in Santa Cruz, about 36 miles north of Salinas. The pier was evacuated and closed to all emergency responders just after 1 p.m.
Two city workers were rescued by lifeguards and the third rescued themself, according to reporting by the Salinas Californian, part of the USA TODAY Network.
Video shows portion of Santa Cruz pier in Pacific Ocean
Construction crews for the city were tearing down a restaurant located on the Wharf, which had been damaged in a storm surge last December, when the collapse occurred, eyewitnesses shared with local CBS affiliate KION-TV.
The damaged section of the pier was closed to the public due to previous storm damage and no members of the public were present when the collapse occurred.
It was “the result of very strong waves crashing into it,” Santa Cruz Mayor Fred Keeley said during a press conference, ABC News reported.