Could the Oceanside Pier collapse due to fire?
OCEANSIDE, Calif. (FOX 5/KUSI) — The community of Oceanside is reeling after the end of their beloved wooden pier went up in flames Thursday.
The fire broke out around 3 p.m. with flames blazing through the old Ruby’s Diner, which has been vacant since February 2021. SkyFox video shows the end of the pier charred and smoldered.
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As of Friday morning, firefighters were still battling the fire with smoke still rising in the air. Though mostly controlled at this point, many are left wondering: could the fire damage cause the iconic pier to collapse?
In an update to the public around 6:30 a.m., Oceanside Fire Chief David Parsons said, “At this point, we don’t know — it’s called the ‘hammerhead’ — we don’t know the structural stability of that part of the pier.”
He went on to explain that he spoke with a city engineer about the pier structure itself.
“If a part of the pier does potentially collapse, the understanding is that likely the rest of the pier will pretty much be untouched by that,” Parsons explained. “The pilings are fairly self-supportive, so we feel good about that. We feel good about the safety of our personnel.”
Parsons did confirm the the roof of the old Ruby’s Diner did collapse early Friday morning.
The fire chief said a structural engineer will need to assess the end of the pier once the flames and smoke fully subside. Parsons expects those in Oceanside and the surrounding communities to continue seeing smoke for the next 24 hours.
“We are making progress,” Parsons assured the public.
In the meantime, fire officials are advising everyone to stay out of the water in the area as debris has fallen from the structure. A beach closure is also in effect from the pier south to Tyson Street due to water quality issues.
In another update Friday afternoon, Parson said that 90% of the pier appears to have been unimpacted due to the extensive firefighting efforts. However, the structural stability of the pier is unknown at this point.
“The city engineer has done an initial basic evaluation. Everything looks stable up to the point of the cut that we created,” Parsons explained. “However, we still don’t have a full assessment of where the fire has burned.”
The exact cause of the fire still remains under investigation. No injuries have been reported so far.
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