The wharf reopened to visitors and merchants less than two weeks after a dangerous storm's crashing waves collapsed more than 100 feet of the pier into the ocean.

Heavy surf destroyed a portion of Santa Cruz Wharf on Monday afternoon, sending three city works into the water. All three people were rescued shortly after.

While big wave surf spots like Mavericks are going off – stay tuned for more on that coming soon – damage and danger from the oversized swell are wreaking havoc elsewhere. In Santa Cruz, a portion of the surf town’s iconic wharf collapsed into the ocean on Monday,

In a brief ceremony Saturday, Cruz City officials reopened the Santa Cruz Municipal Wharf after it was closed Dec. 23.

Two days before Christmas, the Santa Cruz area was hit by the biggest ocean swell in 30 years. The huge waves tore apart a portion of the city's municipal wharf and it has been closed to the public ever since.