It was a relatively quiet New Year in the City by the Sea.
The number of emergency calls that the Santa Monica Fire Department (SMFD) responded to over the New Year weekend was down 23%, from 213 to 164, compared to the same period last year.
According to Captain Patrick Nulty, SMFD Public Information Officer, for the period Friday December 29 to Monday January 1, there were 112 calls for emergency medical, 23 "good intent" call where there were no incidents found, 14 false fire alarms, seven service calls, four relating to hazardous conditions and four actual fires.
"We did not experience any significant events," Nulty told the Daily Press.
The Fire Department wasn’t the only emergency service to report a reduction in calls. The Santa Monica Police Department (SMPD) also responded to fewer call outs, with a drop of 5.5%, from 895 to 845, over the same four day period compared to 12 months ago.
Lieutenant Erika Aklufi told the Daily Press that, generally speaking, the number of calls this year was in line with expectations, given the wide variety of issues related to the increased number of visitors, including traffic problems and some disturbances and businesses. Aklufi also mentioned that during the evening and early morning hours, SMPD had its usual, seasonal uptick in reports of loud parties and music, but she notes that there was only one "shots fired" call at midnight on Jan. 1. "It was fireworks, of course, but I’m glad to know our residents are savvier than most," Aklufi said.
Sadly though, on the morning of Tuesday, January 2, a body was discovered outside the Samoshel homeless shelter at 505 Olympic Blvd and reported to the SMPD. Officers are investigating the incident and no details had been released at the time of going to press. Anyone with information relating to this incident should call the SMPD at (310) 458-8495.
