Demonstration session helps Santa Barbara boaters with emergency flares

SANTA BARBARA, Calif. - The skies were full of flying emergency flares and smoke along the Santa Barbara waterfront Tuesday evening.

A special session was held by the Santa Barbara Harbor Patrol to show boaters the safe way to use different flares.

Some were hand held guns, some were launched with a shove of your palm at the base of flare stick.

Others were held in your hand and they sent out big plumes of orange emergency smoke.

"The first time that you need to use a flare shouldn't be in the middle of the night and you are actually in an emergency," said Harbor Patrol Officer Rick Hubbard. "This gives people a chance to see the different styles of flares, the burn time for the different aerials."

Some were up seven seconds. Some were up about 45 seconds.

Many people brought buckets of flares out to see which ones had expired and what was still useful.

The launching spot was to the west of the Santa Barbara Yacht club.

The flares were shot off at a 45 degree angle towards the ocean. In a normal emergency the Harbor Patrol would ask a boater to shoot a flare straight up, to help pin point a location.

Watch tonight on NewsChannel 3-12, and KKFX Fox 11.

(More details, photos and video will be added here later today)