Ramp, dock collapse at boat company

Stefanie Frith

Twelve people were tossed into the ocean when a dock collapsed

Saturday afternoon at Duffy Electric Boats in Newport Beach, Orange

County Sheriff’s Harbor Patrol said. No serious injuries were reported.

Approximately 20 people, including two pregnant women, were walking up

the ramp to the dock and stopped to take a picture when the end portion

of of the dock and ramp collapsed at about 5:20 p.m., Pam Scalzo,

director of operations at Duffy, said.

“The manager was just heading out to tell them that they shouldn’t all

be on the ramp,” she said. “Only a few people at a time should be out

there.”

Out of the 20 people, 12 fell into the water, which at low tide was

about two feet high and 54 degrees. Harbor Patrol was alerted, and though

they arrived within two minutes, all of the people had already been

pulled out of the water, said Ron Peoples, watch commander for the

Sheriff’s Harbor Patrol.

Most of the people were able to climb out of the water on the own,

while the rest were fished out by Duffy employees. One of the employees,

an off-duty firefighter and paramedic, helped to assess the injuries,

Scalzo said.

The two pregnant women were taken to Hoag Hospital for observation.

“It was just a case of too many people on the dock,” Scalzo said.