Warning system for deaf beachgoers piloted at Torrance Beach
LA County employees test the Beach Emergency Evacuation Lighting System at Torrance Beach. Photo courtesy Los Angeles County Department of Beaches and Harbors Torrance Beach will become the first beach in California, much less the world, to have signals set up to warn deaf and hard-of-hearing beachgoers of emergencies, through a pilot program announced at Tuesday evening’s Torrance City Council meeting. The Beach Emergency Evacuation Lighting System — or BEELS — will install a series of LED lights, visible at a distance of a quarter-mile, on three Torrance Beach-area buildings for hard-of-hearing beachgoers, alongside a series of sirens to broadcast alerts for hearing beachgoers. The program is the brainchild of LA County Department of Beaches and Harbors Safety Officer Randy Dean, the parent of two hard-of-hearing children. As his children went out into the world and into other communities for the deaf, Dean realized local beaches don’t have systems in place to ensure safety for those populations. A survey, released to the hard-of-hearing community, confirmed his suspicion. “They don’t often come, because in an emergency, they won’t know what’s going on — they’ll be confused, and…
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