Meet the US Coast Guardsmen that helped contain the Oceanside Pier fire

The U.S. Coast Guard is tasked with guarding the San Diego coastline, acting as law enforcement and performing search and rescue missions.

On Thursday afternoon, the crew aboard the USCG Cutter Sea Otter took on a mission they don't usually
take on after seeing the Oceanside Pier on fire.

“I was actually personally coming off from watch, and as I was heading down here, I saw from the deck what seemed like billowing flames. Seaman Trew actually went up and caught it on camera. We were able to see that it was on land. You could see it billowing, and we were at least five miles out," said Fireman Antonio Vallabriga, USCG Sea Otter.

That’s when training exercises became a reality for the crew, who doesn’t usually fight fires.

Flames engulfed the pier's end where Ruby’s Diner used to be. It caused a plume of smoke to cover the Oceanside coastline.

Locals were on the edge of their seats, hoping the beloved pier wouldn’t become a distant memory.

All eyes were on the sea otter crew standing within 10 feet of the fire at times.

“As soon as we got into our mission, it was night and day. It was exhilarating once we were all in step and in line with each other, and I’m a little sore now,” said Seaman Tanner Trew, USCG Sea Otter.

Their Master Chief Jay Galazin credits his crew’s ability to be flexible with the heroic actions.

He was driving the ship while his Coast Guardsmen were operating the hose.

His challenge was navigating against the wind.

“There was a lot of wind that day. The difference between firefighting on land [is that] everything is nice and stable, but firefighting from the water. You have waves, winds, all these types of things, and all the different types of bats operating around each other," he said.

Although adrenaline took the lead for the sea otter crew, they knew the importance of preserving the Oceanside gem.

“Learning about the historical significance of the Oceanside Pier and seeing it being ruined as we were fishing inspired us to make sure we could try to save as much as possible," said Fireman Vallabriga.

Oceanside Fire applauds the help from agencies like the Coast Guard, who helped them contain the fire.

Firefighters are still working to extinguish the fire fully, but say 90 percent of the pier was saved.

The cause of the fire is still under investigation.

Early Saturday morning, the county was out testing the water quality, but the Oceanside Fire Department to stay out of the ocean because debris could wash up.