CORONA DEL MAR TODAY

Newport Harbor Filled With Screaming “Victims” During Rescue Drill

A drunken boater crashes into another boat, spilling bloodied, screaming victims into the water of Newport Harbor. “I can’t breathe!” a woman yells as sheriff’s and then lifeguard boats get the call to go help. Ambulances line up and paramedics wait onshore, ready to triage the victims — all part of an open water rescue drill conducted Thursday morning in Corona del Mar.

About 75 emergency personnel from several agencies participated in the drill, which took about two hours and simulated a boat crash with 10 victims, played by fire department employees with one mannequin standing in for the lone fatality. While the emergency teams went over the logistics of the drill inside the Orange County Sheriff’s Department’s Harbor Patrol offices on Bayside Drive, outside, victims were dabbed with wax and fake blood and were reminded of their roles. One woman needed to act as if she’d gone into shock; a man was reminded he was going to be a “walking wounded” — then they were taken by boat to the fake accident site and thrown overboard.

The goals of simulated accidents and rescues are to test the communication coordination of different agencies that would be involved if a real rescue occurred, said Jennifer Schulz, a Newport Beach Fire Department spokeswoman. This drill involved the sheriff’s department, Newport Beach fire and lifeguard crews as well as fire crews from Huntington Beach and Laguna Beach.

Paramedics stabilized their victims, who never seemed to fall out of character.

“My leg hurts real bad!” one man moaned. “I think we were in a boating accident. It happened fast.”

Then he started rolling around on the ground, causing paramedics to rush to him to ask him to stay still. He needed immediate help, but paramedics were more worried by a woman who kept telling them, “I can’t breathe! My face hurts!”

A helicopter began flying circles overhead, looking for two victims who had swum away and couldn’t be found — all part of the plan, Schulz said. As workers triaged and re-triaged their nine surviving victims, other emergency workers were observing the scene in order to assess what they were doing right, and where they needed work.

Overall, the drill went well, Schulz said. “The Harbor department and the lifeguards were able to gain experience assigning other agencies personnel tasks after taking command,” she said. “Previous to the drill they were less comfortable telling other agencies how to use personnel, but after the drill they felt more comfortable all working together.”