UPDATE: Oregon State Police to lead investigation into toppling of Cape Kiwanda pedestal

Oregon State Police and Parks officials watched the viral video showing the toppling of a popular sandstone pedestal at Cape Kiwanda earlier this week, and the agencies said Monday they would "review the incident immediately" and decide how to respond to the apparent vandalism.

That response could include park citations of at least $435, according to state parks spokesman Chris Havel. The State Police will handle whether any criminal charges will be filed.

"Rules prohibit visitors from destroying natural features intentionally," Havel said.

The iconic sandstone pedestal, known as the duckbill by locals and state officials, was destroyed earlier this week. State parks officials first reported Thursday afternoon that the pedestal -- which stood at about 7 feet tall and roughly 7 to 10 feet wide on top -- had collapsed.

Havel said parks officials had no reason to believe the natural wonder was interfered with because sandstone falls apart. "There's no doubt that natural erosion would've eventually brought this thing to the ground," Havel said.

But that wasn't allowed to happen.

David Kalas, a beachgoer, captured a video of three people apparently toppling the sandstone treasure. A fourth sat on the rocks steps away and watched the incident, according to the video. Kalas sent the video to multiple media outlets. Havel said several people have contacted the parks bureau with screenshots of social media accounts and potential leads.

Parks and police officials are expected to meet and discuss the situation Tuesday.

What remains of the sandstone pedestal at Cape Kiwanda.

The pedestal in a dangerous part of the 138-acre state natural area, where at least six people have drowned in the past two years. "There's a reason there's a fence," Havel said.

Havel said it's "pretty rare" that vandals strike natural areas of the state's vast park and natural area network. About 45 million visitors go to the parks and natural areas annually, he said, and the number of vandalism incidents are "small" and typically are related to park buildings.

"I don't recall the last time we had an incident like this," Havel said.

He added that Oregonians, and other visitors, have a "great deal of pride," in the state's natural wonders.

-- Andrew Theen

atheen@oregonian.com

503-294-4026

@andrewtheen