Ocean’s Tranquillity Can Mask Potential Dangers : Safety: Authorities say accidents and close-calls frequently occur along the coast as people fall victim to the water’s seeming serenity.

The ocean appears tranquil from a cliff overlooking Smugglers’ Cove in Rancho Palos Verdes. It rolls gently toward the rocky shore but does not seem to have the energy to reach it.

“It’s really calm,” said Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Sgt. Jim Sully, an avid outdoorsman who patrols the coast as head of the Lomita station’s off-road enforcement. “There’s no threat out there at all. That looks like a perfect place to fish.”

Yet minutes later, a look of awe comes over Sully’s face as a wave leaps forward, covering the rocks in a torrent of white foam and offering evidence of nature’s unpredictability.

It was wave surges like this, authorities believe, that were responsible for the deaths of three fishermen last weekend, underscoring the dangers of the area’s unspoiled beauty, rugged terrain and solitude.

“That ocean does what it wants, when it wants,” said Sully, 37, a 14-year veteran of law enforcement who grew up on the peninsula. “I know what the ocean can do. I’ve seen boats get beached. I’ve seen people get cut up on those rocks. I’ve seen lifeguards standing on the shore shaking their heads at the surf.”

The tragedy, and danger, of last weekend was that it began so typically. There were strong waves, a quick breeze, and large groups of people spread out along the crevices of the coast. It ended with three dead.

On Saturday afternoon, George Robinson was fishing with five relatives on the rocks at Smugglers’ Cove when a large wave knocked the 57-year-old Los Angeles man into the water. One of his sons jumped in after him but he was unable to rescue his father.

The following day, about 4 p.m., two men took their girlfriends to another desolate spot for a day of fishing. Again, waves swept the fishermen off their rocky perch in Lunada Bay and into the surging sea. A team of divers recovered the bodies of Denny Choung Lay, 28, of El Monte, and Kuhirun Wang, 29, of Alhambra, the next morning.

Authorities say accidents and close-calls occur with some frequency along the coast as people fall victim to the seeming serenity of the peninsula’s unique geography--a rugged, rocky coastline that juts out unprotected into passing storms, where water surges through rock formations and undertows pull with intensity. Prior to last weekend, the last drownings took place in June when two men fishing on a rock were knocked into the surging water.

Still, the visitors come by the hundreds as soon as the weekend hits: surfers carrying long-boards lured by the surging waves, surf fishermen in search of yellowtail, mackerel and rock cod, as well as scuba divers, hikers and nude sunbathers.

To get from the plush neighborhoods in Palos Verdes Estates and Rancho Palos Verdes to the rugged coastline below, they follow dirt pathways that slowly wind down the 150-foot-high cliffs. Areas closed to the public bear warning signs: “DANGEROUS CONDITIONS. Do not climb on or over railing. Don’t even think about it!” But even some trails open to the public are so steep that one false move means plummeting to the rocks below.

“It’s a good workout, going up and down the trails,” said Rich Wright, 28, a surfer who compares the peninsula’s waves to a small version of Sunset Beach, Hawaii. “It’s part of the experience. You’re really getting away from it all.”

The danger doesn’t dissolve once beach-goers reach the bottom. Beside the unexpected waves, there are slippery rocks, powerful eddies and other variables that Mother Nature throws east.

“Each particular area along the peninsula’s coast is a little different,” said Los Angeles County Lifeguard Capt. Bob Buchanan, “but even if you know the area where you are, the conditions change there too.”

When emergencies do occur, the same remoteness that draws people to the coast can complicate rescue attempts. Initial reports are often delayed as witnesses to the accident hike up the trails and then search for a telephone.

When emergency calls do reach authorities, officials acknowledge that their response is sometimes delayed by jurisdictional complications and the sketchy information they receive. The crevices carry names like Inspiration Point, Bluff Cove and Flat Rock Point but huge stretches don’t have any monikers. Callers often don’t know exactly where they are.

“They say their friend went in the water off the peninsula,” said Sully. “We say, ‘Where?’ Then we start a game of hide and seek.”

In both incidents last weekend, there were complaints that authorities took too long to get to the scene. The 911 call to the sheriff’s Lomita substation on Saturday somehow was routed initially to the lifeguard’s Venice headquarters as a non-emergency, and a woman who witnessed Sunday’s drowning said one victim was bobbing in the water for 40 minutes before being pulled out.

Officials from the Lomita sheriff’s substation, county lifeguards and county Fire Department met Wednesday afternoon to assess ways of improving their coordination and response times, said Randy DeGregori, the county’s assistant chief lifeguard. There are also ongoing discussions about improving the equipment available for future emergencies.

The Sheriff’s Department, for instance, seeks federal funding for a 90-foot patrol boat that would be used primarily near Los Angeles International Airport but could also be used in rescues off the South Bay coast.

Sully and others in the department say the installation of emergency telephones like those along the freeway could cut down on reporting times. A volunteer patrol by ham radio operators also has been mentioned.

As preventive measures, lifeguards say that those going to the coast should study the waves before they approach them and stay calm if they fall in the water. If caught in the raging surf it is a good idea to remove jackets, jeans and other heavy clothing that weighs one down.

But in the end, those who respond to emergencies along the coast say only a healthy amount of respect for Mother Nature will reduce accidents.

“A lot of people think it’s a big pool out there,” said Sully. “Boy, are they wrong. The current in some places is like a washing machine. I’ve been in the water here swimming as fast as I can and I’m still being pulled to the bottom. . . . As long as you mix people and the ocean, you’re going to have drownings.”