Huge waves batter California coast: Man dead, another missing, section of pier collapses

Large waves that collapsed a portion of the Santa Cruz pier on Monday are also being blamed for the death of a man who was pinned beneath debris on a stretch of Monterey Bay coastline farther south. On Monday, the National Weather Service issued a high surf warning for California’s northern coast — including Santa Cruz, Point Reyes, San Francisco and northern Monterey Bay — and urged people to stay away from beaches until 6 p.m. Tuesday because of life-threatening conditions. “Sudden immersion in cold water can result in cold water shock even for the most experienced swimmers.” In many ways, officials in Santa Cruz said they were prepared for the high surf in the forecast. “This isn’t what we thought was going to happen, for sure, but we were prepared,” Santa Cruz Fire Department Division Chief Ryan Reber said during a Tuesday news conference. “Again, Mother Nature holds the cards, and we do know that these west swells are continuing to grow in severity, and we’ll continue to assess the damage that’s been ongoing to determine how we’re going to proceed.” In the next few weeks or months, officials are going to have “a sober conversation about what happens when you are a jurisdiction on the edge of the continent in a world of climate change,” Santa Cruz Mayor Fred Keeley said.