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# Lifeguards, Coast Guard have a flare for the dramatic
- URL: https://www.smdp.com/lifeguards-coast-guard-have-a-flare-for-the-dramatic/
- Published: 2004-04-03T16:00:00.000Z
- Updated: 2026-10-23T04:09:38.000Z
- Author: Guest Author
- Tags: Community, Santa Monica, #archive-import

*By Daily Press staff*

Local lifeguards and the United States Coast Guard staged an emergency drill off of Santa Monica beach this week.

While the routine drill is staged about twice a month, it seldom fails to garner the attention of local residents.

The Daily Press fielded e-mails from concerned residents who saw the Coast Guard helicopter hovering above the Baywatch boat Wednesday, lifting bodies up from the deck of the boat while riding into the wind.

Los Angeles County Fire Department Lifeguard Garth Canning, a spokesman, said the emergency workers may have attracted additional attention this time because of the use of flares during their three-hour exercise. Canning assured residents, however, that nobody was injured and the drill went off without a hitch.

*Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on April 3, 2004.* [Read the original PDF.](https://s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com/smdp%5Fbackissues/040304.pdf?ref=smdp.com)