Firefighters Battle Blaze on Historic Oceanside, CA, Pier

April 26, 2024
The fire appears to have started in a vacant restaurant at the end of the pier and spread.

Terry Castleman

Los Angeles Times

(TNS)

Firefighters were responding to a large fire at the Oceanside pier Thursday afternoon around 3:30 p.m., according to a statement from the Oceanside Fire Department.

livestream from KGTV in San Diego showed a massive smoke plume emanating from the end of the pier.

It was unclear whether anyone was injured or when the blaze would be contained.

"We are asking all citizens to please stay away from the immediate area," the Oceanside Fire Department wrote on Facebook.

Jessica Waithe, operator of the Brine Box restaurant located at the end of the pier, told the San Diego Union-Tribune that several employees were working when the fire broke out, but all were able to get away safely.

The pier, built in 1887 and rebuilt five times since then, stretches for 1,942 feet, making it one of the longest wooden piers on the West Coast.

In the late 1970s, a strong winter storm whipped up waves that swept a 560-foot chunk of the pier — including a bait shop and restaurant — out to sea. During the winter of 1982-83, the ocean struck again, damaging the aging structure and leaving a 110-foot-long section standing as an odd-looking island.

This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.

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