Beach crowd troublesome over holiday

Hot temperatures drove crowds of sun seekers to Newport’s beaches over the Memorial Day weekend, creating the ultimate beach day for some but a headache for the city’s police and lifeguards.

From 6 p.m. Friday to 6 a.m. Tuesday, police reported more than 1,000 calls for service, and they arrested 36 people. Those numbers are extremely high for a regular weekend, but not so unusual for a summer holiday, authorities said.

“This Memorial Day was exceptionally busy because of the weather,” said Newport Beach Sgt. Bill Hartford.

The Police Department boosted staffing on its DUI enforcement teamsthat patrolled the streets, Hartford said.

A reported purse snatcher at Blackie’s caused a scene Monday night when he allegedly stole a bag and fled ? into the water. The man was talking to some women in a bar, distracted them and allegedly stole a purse that contained nearly $700 in property. When police saw a man who matched the description, Jerimiah John Carrillo, 21, of Rosemead ran into the water near the Newport Pier, Hartford said.

A police helicopter spotted Carrillo and officers took him into custody, Hartford said.

Newport Beach Lifeguards gathered all the troops they could muster to handle the crowd of nearly 100,000 people that hit the beach over Memorial Day weekend, Lifeguard Battalion Chief Rob Williams said.

Lifeguards made about 100 rescues, but there were no major incidents, Williams said.

“We had a lot of preventive actions and education,” he said.

The west swell and mild surf cut lifeguards a break, Williams said. Unlike a south swell, which would have spread surf across the beaches, the west swell kept most of the surf near Blackie’s, where a majority of the weekend’s rescues were made.

Although full lifeguard staffing won’t start up until the end of June, more than 40 lifeguards worked over the weekend. Lifeguards patrolled the beaches until 9 p.m. Monday night because of the number of people still on the beach, Williams said.

Costa Mesa police said the city was quiet over the weekend. That’s because everyone headed to the beach, Costa Mesa Police Sgt. Marty Carver said.