AP
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A severe storm hit California’s central coast on Monday, bringing flooding and high surf that reportedly fatally trapped a man under debris on a beach and later partially collapsed a pier, throwing three people into the Pacific Ocean.

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

Late Monday, the National Weather Service announced that the coastal flood warning would remain in effect until noon Tuesday, while the high surf warning would remain in effect until 6 p.m. the same day.

“We anticipate that what is coming is more serious than what was here this morning,” said Fred Keeley, mayor of the city of Santa Cruz, where the pier collapsed.

In Watsonville on 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 trapped him there. The man was pronounced dead at a hospital. Further details were not immediately available and his name was not released.

The storm’s high surf likely pulled another man into the Pacific Ocean midday Monday at Marina State Beach, nearly 13 miles (21 kilometers) south of Watsonville, authorities said.

The U.S. Coast Guard and California Highway Patrol were deployed to search for the man by air and sea but were unable to locate him, according to Marina Police. Strong currents and high waves forced searchers to abandon their efforts about two hours later as conditions deteriorated. The man remained missing on Monday evening.

In Santa Cruz, the municipal wharf under construction partially collapsed and plunged into the sea around 12:45 p.m., taking three people with it. Two people were rescued by lifeguards and a third swam to safety. Nobody was seriously injured.

Keeley, the mayor, said part of the wharf had been damaged over time. The building was in the middle of a $4 million renovation after destructive storms last winter about 70 miles (112 kilometers) south of San Francisco.

“It’s a disaster for those at the end of the wharf,” said David Johnston, owner of Venture Quest Kayaking, who was allowed onto the pier to check on his business.

Tony Elliot, director of the Santa Cruz Parks & Recreation Department, estimated that about 150 feet (45 meters) of the end of the wharf fell into the water. It was immediately evacuated and will remain closed indefinitely.

Some of the pier’s pilings are still in the sea and continue to pose a “serious danger” to boats, the mayor said. Each post weighs hundreds of pounds and is pushed down by powerful waves.

“You are risking your life and those of the people who would have to try to rescue you by getting into the water or too close to the water,” the Bay Area office of the National Weather Service said on the social platform X.

The demolished end of Santa Cruz Wharf had been closed during renovations. The portion, which included public restrooms and the closed Dolphin Restaurant, floated about half a mile (0.8 kilometers) down the coast and became wedged on the bottom of the San Lorenzo River.

Those who fell into the water were two engineers and a project manager who were inspecting the end of the wharf, officials said. There were no members of the public in the area.

Building inspectors examined the remainder of the pier’s structural integrity.

Further up the West Coast, dangerous surf conditions and waves of up to 30 feet (9.1 meters) were expected from the central Oregon coast to southwest Washington. Forecasters said winds could peak near 80 mph (130 km/h) and a high surf warning was in effect until 10 p.m. Monday evening.

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CNN’s Karina Tsui contributed to this report.