Hermosa Beach plans Fourth of July crackdown
Police on horseback patrol the Second Street beach. Photo by Ed Pilolla The Hermosa Beach Police and Fire departments are preparing for this year’s Fourth of July with a proactive approach in the hopes of reducing arrests and emergency response incidents. Last year, the police department responded to 244 incidents, a leap from the 2008 – 2012 average of 180. “Very early we had a massive influx of people coming in to drink hard—mostly around 2nd Street,” Interim Police Chief Steve Johnson said at Tuesday night’s City Council meeting. “We ran out of jail space,” said Johnson, citing the 18 drunk in public arrests they made throughout the day. “We had to let some people out early because we had some people in a worse state, some were sobering up while some were more heavily intoxicated.” At last year’s Fourth of July, the fire department responded to 31 emergency incidents, with activity increasing after noon and peaking in the evening until midnight. Along with staffing two paramedic ambulances, one emergency medical technician ambulance, two paramedic fire engines and one command vehicle, city officials will also utilize social media to track activity and provide information to the…
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