Japan Earthquake: California state parks evacuate campers over tsunami warning

Campers were evacuated from park campgrounds from Ventura to Crescent City early Friday in response to the tsunami warning for the California coast triggered by the Japanese earthquake. Beaches in Los Angeles and Orange counties also were closed.

The California Department of Parks and Recreation issued a statement about the closures. Near Crescent City, where 8-foot waves battered the city’s harbor, campgrounds at Usal and Bear Harbor in the Sinkyone Wilderness area were evacuated and closed. Campers also were evacuated from MacKerricher, Van Damme, Navarro Beach and Manchester state parks near Fort Bragg, which also sustained damage, where beach access, trailheads, parking lots and entrance roads remained shut.

Other areas that evacuated campers included:

--Andrew Molera State park in Big Sur;

--Pismo State Beach, Morro Strand State Beach and Oceano Dunes in the San Luis Obispo area;

--Campgrounds in Ventura and Santa Barbara such as Gaviota and El Capitan state parks.

State park spokesman Roy Stearns says he expected campgrounds to be open by the end of Friday.