_{Thumbnail photo: H Dock in the Crescent City Harbor District’s marina bore the brunt of the wave energy from the July 30, 2025 Kamchatka tsunami. | Photo courtesy of Mike Rademaker}

More than a year after an 8.8 magnitude earthquake on the other side of the ocean sent a tsunami into Crescent City, the Harbor District is working to have H Dock available to the fishing community.

The goal is to allow vessels to tie up to H Dock and to access water and electricity by the start of the Dungeness crab season tentatively scheduled for Jan. 1, Harbormaster Mike Rademaker told Redwood Voice Community News on Monday.

The Crescent City Harbor District Board of Commissioners on Wednesday heard a report from GHD Senior Marine Structural Engineer Marc Percher on temporary and permanent fixes to H Dock, which sustained the most damage from the July 30, 2025 Kamchatka earthquake and tsunami.

But before Percher gave his presentation, CCHD Board President Rick Shepherd said he felt the proposed temporary solution would be too expensive. He suggested taking steps to allow vessels to tie up to H Dock and to tap into its water and electricity systems, thereby freeing up the port’s repair dock. 

But instead of doing the entire temporary repair, Shepherd said, the port should work on funding a permanent solution.

“It’s a huge repair,” Shepherd said. “We need to get our work dock back. The shrimpers are wanting to do some repair work and they’re not allowed to — there are transient boats blocking an important part of the marina. To get them moved out there is, I think, our top priority.”

Both the temporary and permanent fixes to H Dock would be paid for through funding from the California Office of Emergency Services, Rademaker said.

Constructed as part of the overall marina following the March 2011 tsunami, H Dock consists of concrete modular floats restrained by two to four piles per float, according to Percher’s report. A transformer at its western end provides electricity to the dock through internal conduits within each float. High-density polyethylene pipes on the docks provide firewater and potable water to the dock.

On the morning of July 30, 2025, during a community briefing, Rademaker said that H Dock was designed to disrupt and disperse wave action, thereby protecting the marina’s interior docks.

According to him, the surges began entering the harbor at about 2:40 a.m. July 30, 2025, lifting the decking on H Dock. As water levels increased, the decking lodged on the docks pilings and was eventually submerged. Staff also observed electrical arcing and sparking during the tsunami.

On Wednesday, Percher said that though it was damaged, H Dock did what it was supposed to do during a tsunami — protect the rest of the marina. Referring to a site visit he and his colleague Stephanie Gould conducted about two weeks ago, Percher said the Harbor district faces an economic decision about what kind of investment they want to make.

“The temporary fix that we’re showing here is really intended to get you to limited operations during the crab season window on a temporary basis,” Percher said. “Long term, we would definitely be recommending the electrical system is rewired through the existing conduits.”

According to Percher’s report, as a temporary measure, GHD recommends installing new penetrations to the existing transformer and new temporary lines from the transformer to the utility pedestals. These lines would run in conduits on the deck’s surface with “flexible connections” at each float.

A temporary fix for the water system includes rerouting potable water to new hose lines that’s also above the deck to the utility pedestals. GHD also recommended building a plywood walking surface to support vessel operations.

Percher’s report also stated that cables could be strung overhead on temporary posts that would sit atop the floats. The cables could be fed to outlet boxes located on the temporary posts. The utility pedestals would be unable to provide electrical power, according to the report.

“It is recognized that a temporary line above the existing concrete dock will result in tripping hazards,” Percher stated. “However, given the short duration to implement repairs, this hazard is considered acceptable to return H Dock to operations. The intent is that following crab season, the temporary construction would be removed and a final repair design would be implemented.”

After reviewing Percher’s report with harbor maintenance staff and local fishermen, CCHD is moving forward with a less elaborate design than the one GHD recommends, Rademaker told Redwood Voice. The design wouldn’t include the plywood walking surface or the timber frames and posts.

“It will be deployed more quickly and (more) cost-effectively,” Rademaker said. “Even though the harbor isn’t paying for it directly, we don’t want to waste taxpayer money if a scaled-down solution would be equally effective.”

On Wednesday, Shepherd said the long-term fixes GHD recommends for H Dock will also have to “go through the entire marina.” One of the recommendations, to put a mesh sheathe around the electrical wires, “should have been done to begin with,” Shepherd said.

Shepherd’s colleague, Gerhard Weber asked if structural changes to the docks have been considered, not just fixing the water and electricity systems. He mentioned elected officials at the state level who are often instrumental in supplying the Harbor District with the money to fix any damage.

The Harbor District’s current maintenance foreman, Billy Newport, and its previous maintenance foreman, Rich Salvaressa, have looked at GHD’s recommendations.

“We’re planning on coming up with a solution that they feel is workable for this harbor knowing the harbor as long as they have,” Shepherd said.