Major storm pounds California's central coast, blamed for man's death and partially collapsing pier

Source: AP

By MARTHA MENDOZA and STEFANIE DAZIO
Updated 11:42 PM CST, December 23, 2024

SANTA CRUZ, Calif. (AP) — A major storm pounded California’s central coast on Monday, bringing flooding and high surf that was blamed for fatally trapping a man beneath debris on a beach and later partially collapsing a pier, tossing three people into the Pacific Ocean.

The storm was expected to bring hurricane-force winds and waves up to 60 feet (18 meters) as it gained strength from California to the Pacific Northwest. Some California cities ordered beachfront homes and hotels to evacuate early Monday afternoon as forecasters warned that storm swells would continue to increase throughout the day.

“We are anticipating that what is coming toward us is more serious than what was there this morning,” said Fred Keeley, mayor of the city of Santa Cruz, where the pier collapsed.

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.


A building from a wharf collapse floats in the ocean Monday, Dec. 23, 2024, in Santa Cruz, Calif. (Shmuel Thaler/The Santa Cruz Sentinel via AP)

Read more: https://apnews.com/article/california-storm-high-surf-pier-collapse-39b4acb32a8baab53289d4cd990f9311