Work has begun on the demolition of two buildings destroyed by the fire in April at the end of the Oceanside pier. The sounds of sawing and hammering could be heard across the downtown oceanfront this week as scaffolding and subflooring were installed to prepare for the removal of charred timbers. The scaffold beneath the pier will prevent workers and any potentially toxic debris from falling into the ocean, city officials said. The wood contains preservatives that could be harmful. The project is expected to continue for several weeks, they said. Most of the pier will remain open to the public during the activities, except for brief closures to allow access for vehicles and equipment. Jilk Heavy Construction, Inc., a company that previously did maintenance and improvements on the Oceanside Pier, submitted the only bid for the demolition. The Oceanside City Council approved a contract with the company Sept. 25 for up to $1.3 million. Jilk also has worked on other ocean piers and built more than 50 railroad bridges in Southern California. City officials have said the burned section will be repaired, but not when. The job is expected to cost as much as $17 million, and so far no source has been identified for the money. Old wiring beneath the deck planks appears to have started the blaze accidentally, authorities said, although the cause remains unofficial. A report from the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives is expected. The larger building on the pier was a former 1950s-style Ruby’s Restaurant that closed in March 2020 because of the pandemic and never reopened. The smaller building was the local Brine Box seafood takeout shop that opened less than a year before the fire. The shop used the kitchen in the larger building to cook some of its food. Along with what’s left of the buildings, the demolition will remove damaged portions of the railing and the deck, some of which were burned away completely. Quick action by firefighters and other emergency workers from across the region is credited for saving more than 90 percent of the structure. A similar fire destroyed a long vacant Ruby’s Diner at the end of the Seal Beach Pier in Orange County in May 2016. The restaurant there had been closed for three years after operating there for 25 years. The pier was shut down three years for repairs that cost $8.4 million and did not include the restaurant, which was not replaced. Oceanside has had a pier since 1888. The nearly 2,000-foot-long version there now is the sixth, built in 1986 to replace one destroyed by storms. The concrete approach to the pier, known as the Pier View Way Bridge, was built in 1927. Plans have been under way for several years to replace the deteriorating structure. That project is expected to cost about $40 million. The city also is looking for grant money to cover the costs of both the wooden pier and the concrete bridge.