Firefighters have put out a blaze that ravaged the end of the Oceanside Pier, a local landmark that has been destroyed by fire and storms and rebuilt several times during its 136-year history.
As of Friday, the wooden pylons of the 1,954-foot wooden structure were still smoldering from the fire that broke out Thursday, officials said. No injuries were reported.
Oceanside and Strand beaches are still closed to the public as an environmental group cleans up debris washed up on shore. The fire also damaged a vacant restaurant that was formerly Ruby’s Diner and a snack bar that housed Brine Box, a seafood restaurant.
“Ninety percent of the pier was saved because of a very quick response,” said Terry Gorman Brown, public information officer for the City of Oceanside. “A lot of times when the pillars hang, they’re wooden – they’re toast.”
The structure is so high above the water that sea spray was unable to extinguish the flames, she said.
“We don’t know (the cause) yet because until (the fire) is completely out, we can’t really get out,” Brown said.
The city engineer is assessing the damage and determining when the pier could reopen to the public.
This is not the first time the pier has caught fire. The last time was in 1976, when a fire destroyed part of the pier’s fish market, according to Kristi Hawthorne, director of the Oceanside Historical Society, who wrote a brief history of the pier for the Chamber of Commerce of Oceanside.
The wooden pier is the longest of its kind on the West Coast and has been rebuilt five times since it was first built in 1888, so much so that it cannot be considered the same pier.
“It’s never the same pier again,” Hawthorne said. “But in our hearts and minds, it’s still Oceanside Pier.”
The pier was originally built as a commercial shipping pier to bring business to Oceanside, which was incorporated the year the pier opened. But two years later, the pier was destroyed in a big storm and was rebuilt four years later as a tourist pier with iron pilings.
The pier has been demolished or damaged several times during storms. The current sixth iteration of the pier was built in 1987 at a cost of $5 million.
The worn dents of the first pier are still sometimes visible at low tide, and other parts of the structure have managed to survive the test of time. The access bridge connecting pedestrians to the pier is almost 100 years old, and the city is using funding from a sales tax measure to help demolish and build a new bridge that will be about three stories tall and house restaurants and other businesses.
Oceanside is still in the preliminary design phase of that plan, with the new building estimated to cost around $40 million.
Despite the pier’s scarred history, Hawthorne said, city residents have always been committed to rebuilding it because it is part of the local identity.
“It’s the pride of Oceanside,” said Hawthorne, who began researching the pier in 1987 as a volunteer with the Oceanside Historical Society.
The pier has been part of significant moments in Oceanside’s history. In 1916, a massive flood swept through San Diego County. Roads and railroads were cut off from the area, Hawthorne said, and the pier was used to deliver emergency supplies by boat.
During World War II, the pier became a military surveillance post for enemy aircraft and submarines.
Hawthorne’s children grew up visiting the pier and eating there on special occasions. She said local residents have their graduation photos taken overlooking the water. It’s one of the first places she recommends tourists visit.
“You get one of the most beautiful and iconic walks,” she said of the view from the pier.
The current pier may need to be rebuilt by 2037, as its lifespan is estimated at 50 years.
Its ever-changing nature adds to its charm, Hawthorne said.
“We don’t consider (the fire) a loss,” she said. “It’s just a new chapter.”
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