Santa Cruz County on edge as high surf and flooding threats linger on Christmas Eve

SANTA CRUZ, Calif. - Though the weather should dry up on Christmas, Tuesday's forecast, which includes high surf and flooding, has many Santa Cruz County residents on high alert a day after a major storm was blamed for one man’s death in Watsonville and the partial collapse of the Santa Cruz pier, which sent three people hurtling into the Pacific Ocean.

The National Weather Service on Christmas Eve warned of dangerous, large-breaking waves of up to 35 feet. Its latest high surf warning will be in effect until 6 p.m. Tuesday.

The good news is that on Christmas Day, the clouds should part and the skies will be clear. 

Here's a recap of what happened on Monday throughout the county and nearby Monterey County: 

Santa Cruz

In Santa Cruz, a municipal wharf under construction partially collapsed and fell into the ocean around 12:45 p.m. on Monday, taking three people – two engineers and a project manager inspecting the wharf – with it. Two people were rescued by lifeguards and a third swam to safety. No one was seriously injured.

One of the rescues, via jet ski, was captured on camera. Before the lifeguard arrived, the man, wearing a hard hat, was seen standing on top of floating debris from the collapsed wharf, waving his arms for help. A second man was also seen nearby floating on the remnants of the wharf.

Santa Cruz Fire Department Division Chief Ryan Reber still told the public to stay away from the coastal areas on Tuesday, which include rocks, jetties and cliffs.

"There are dangerous and powerful waves still coming through today and through tonight," Reber said. 

He did acknowledge how grateful he was that no one was injured despite the harrowing scenes.

Debris from the wharf flooded surrounding waterways and washed up onto some roadways.

"These pilings are really long, they're large, they're heavy," said harbormaster Blake Anderson. "If we have another surge or storm system that comes through, the surge can actually carry the pilings a long way and if they hit a boat, that boat can sink and go down."

Anderson said over a dozen boats were sunk and 200 have sustained damage.

It's a race against time as the next surge could send more obstacles their way, and more boats to the bottom. He and others worked to clear debris and safeguard the roughly 900 remaining vessels. 

"If we can get some of these pilings from the wharf that are floating around in the harbor out, to prevent damage to other boats.we're prioritizing that right now," said Anderson.

Santa Cruz Mayor Fred Keeley told reporters that a section of the wharf had been damaged over time and had been under active construction. The structure was in the middle of a $4 million renovation following destructive storms last winter about 70 miles south of San Francisco.

Some of the wharf’s pilings are still in the ocean and remain "serious, serious hazards" to boats, the mayor said. Each piling weighs hundreds of pounds and is being pushed by powerful waves.

Those structures at the end of the wharf floated about half a mile down the coast and wedged themselves at the bottom of the San Lorenzo River.

Tony Elliot, the head of the Santa Cruz Parks & Recreation Department, estimated that about 150 feet of the end of the wharf fell into the water. 

Specifically, the damage was relegated to the area where the former Dolphin restaurant once lived. The restaurant was aging and was red-tagged in the 2023 storms.

It had been previously taken down "and it was not on the wharf when it collapsed," Elliot told reporters on Tuesday. "That's a good thing."

There was also a public restroom, which also had been non-operable and all the infrastructure had been shut off. 

Elliot said right now, Santa Cruz is in a "moment of an emergency," so crews are trying to understand what should be done at the pier for the next 72 hours.

As for the long term, Elliot said he doesn't have any immediate plans on what it will take to rebuild. 

Residents were shocked. 

"We noticed that the pier was swaying a lot, and we heard a lot of cracking. But we didn't think much of it. Then all of a sudden it all fell into the water," said 15-year-old Landon Ky. "There were construction workers on it. And it sounded like thunder."

David Johnston, who was allowed onto the pier to check on his business, Venture Quest Kayaking, said: "It’s a catastrophe for those down at the end of the wharf." 

Santa Cruz Main Beach and Cowell's Beach are closed. The wharf will be closed until further notice, officials said. 

Capitola 

North of Sunset State Beach in Capitola, part of the Village shopping center was closed down Monday as a precaution and other low-lying areas were also evacuated. 

"All of those restaurants have been evacuated before and people have spent a lot of money keeping those restaurants open. So, hopefully they don’t flood but I know they’ve evacuated them all," said Capitola resident Devon Lincoln. 

Capitola beach is also brqacing for possible flooding. 

Watsonville 

In Watsonville along the Monterey Bay, first responders were called to Sunset State Beach, a state park, around 11:30 a.m. Monday for a report of a man trapped under debris. 

The Santa Cruz County Sheriff’s Office believes a large wave pinned him there. The man was pronounced dead at a hospital.

Other details were not immediately available, and his name has not been released.

Keeley, Santa Cruz's mayor, said that coastal communities around the world need to have more "sober conversations" about "what happens when you are a jurisdiction on the edge of the continent."

He added: "In a world of climate change, do you simply say that was that? I'm not as sanguined about that."

Monterey County

Large swells at Marina State Beach on Monday afternoon swept a man out to sea, police said.

Bystanders tried to save the man, but the high surf and strong currents made it impossible.

The U.S. Coast Guard and the California Highway Patrol deployed air and sea resources to search for the man, but those operations were suspended due to worsening conditions.

The man is still considered missing.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.