Redondo Beach Sues for $2 Million Over Pier’s Collapse

The city of Redondo Beach has filed a lawsuit against a San Pedro engineering firm alleging that it failed to properly design and inspect a pier that collapsed during a heavy storm nearly two years ago.

In the lawsuit filed Wednesday in Torrance Superior Court, the city contends that Don Hellmers Engineering did not design the pier, which was known as the Fishing Promenade, to withstand storms.

The lawsuit also alleges an inadequate inspection by the engineering company three months before the pier’s collapse in April, 1988, which prevented the city from making necessary repairs. The city had asked for the inspection that January following a vicious, two-day storm that resulted in an estimated $17 million in damage to King Harbor.

Hellmers Engineering, which advertises itself in the telephone book as specializing in harbor facilities, refused to comment Thursday.

The lawsuit, which charges Hellmers with negligence, breach of contract, fraud and deceit, seeks more than $2 million in damages. City Atty. Gordon Phillips said the city had no written contract with Hellmers and in pressing the suit must rely on an oral agreement.

The lawsuit contends that Hellmers, which designed the pier in 1982, failed to adequately determine how far the pilings should be driven into the harbor bottom. The suit also contends that the company’s design did not call for the pilings to be cross-braced.

In January, 1988, King Harbor was severely damaged after a combination of heavy rain, high tides and winds ravaged the popular recreation area. A large hotel and more than two dozen smaller businesses were damaged, and numerous boats sank. A dozen people were slightly injured.

About four months later, another storm hit Southern California and the pier collapsed, causing further damage to several nearby businesses and surrounding piers.

The pier, built in 1985 to connect the Monstadt and Horseshoe piers, has not been rebuilt.