Strong waves fueled by recent storms, a more than century-old wharf hit by hundreds of storms and a construction zone created a “perfect situation” for the partial collapse of the Santa Cruz Municipal Wharf on Monday said a city official.

Now, as crews assess the damage and safety issues, the city must decide whether to tackle quick repairs or think long-term as climate change fuels sea level rise and stronger storms, Santa Cruz’s mayor said Tuesday.

A group of city officials held a news conference nearly 24 hours after the end of the wharf collapsed in heavy surf Monday afternoon, plunging three workers into the water. Two were rescued by lifeguards and one swam to safety. No one was significantly injured.

The storm surge also sent a public toilet into the sea, as well as the remains of the destroyed Dolphin restaurant, which closed nearly a year ago after being red-tagged due to strong storms in 2023.

Officials stressed that there is still a state of emergency on the coast that will last through Tuesday night and likely into Wednesday, and that people should avoid the coast, including coastal lookouts.

Due to the high surf warning and large amounts of debris, including potentially hazardous materials, the wharf, Main Beach and Cowell’s Beach are closed until further notice.

Mike Godsy, the city’s parks superintendent, said assessment of the now-closed wharf is ongoing.

“There are many, many dynamic levels of what is really being assessed, from the beaches to the wharf structure itself,” Godsy said. “Public safety is obviously the main goal. On the active structure itself, we are working with our contracted engineering firms to obtain a sound, up-to-date understanding of the structural integrity of the quay structure.”

“We are also looking at what this means in terms of public safety and the ability to reopen the wharf,” Godsy said. “Those informed decisions, those times and dates will be determined once we have a lot more data and a lot more understanding of the current situation.”

Godsy said the city is thankful the damage wasn’t worse.

“We are very grateful for the structural integrity of the wharf and how strong and tenacious it has been through many, many, many, many storms over more than 100 years. A construction site that was open and had many different variables that really made the perfect provided a situation for the collapse.”

Police evacuated the wharf on Monday and used a drone to ensure there were no more victims in the water. Santa Cruz Fire Department Operations and Marine Safety Division Chief Ryan Reber said first responders were ready.

“We’ve had this swell on our radar for a full week and so we had eight additional lifeguards on two of our personal watercraft with four people, two on each, out in the water already patrolling the area. That’s not what.” We thought it was going to happen for sure, but we were prepared.

Mayor Fred Keeley said that although the city is still “in the wake of the incident,” it needs to have a “sober conversation” about how to combat the effects of climate change.

“What happens when you’re in the jurisdiction, on the edge of the continent, in a world with climate change?” Keeley said. “Just say that’s it and we’ll put everything back and see how it goes?” I’m not so confident about that. I think we need to take time outside of the context of the heat of the moment and understand what we’re going to do with our partners in federal and state government who continue to support not just us but other jurisdictions on climate change , disasters and damage help.

“If so, let’s have this conversation. If not, what does that mean for us? Hallelujah that no one was injured in this, which could have been orders of magnitude worse in terms of human injuries and property damage on land and offshore.”

Keeley said Santa Cruz is not alone.

“That’s what these communities around the world are probably struggling with in this manifestation of climate change… we face a different challenge in the future.”

The wharf collapse was one of several incidents related to high surf along the coast on Monday.

A large wave washed up on Sunset State Beach in Monterey Bay around 11:30 a.m., trapping a man under debris, according to a Santa Cruz County spokesman. The man was taken to a hospital where he was pronounced dead.

In Sonoma County, three people were swept off the edge of Scotty’s Creek near Bodega Bay by a strong ocean wave around 12:30 p.m.

“The wave overtook the subjects and carried two of them approximately 150 yards up the creek,” the Sonoma County Sheriff’s Office said on social media.

Two deputy chiefs who were nearby responded and found a person clinging to rocks. Two more were carried further up the stream by the powerful wave. They were both rescued by rescue workers.