LAKE PATROLS GET ENFORCEMENT TOOLS BOATS TO BE ADDED TO CASTAIC, PYRAMID.

Byline: Eugene Tong Staff Writer

CASTAIC - County police at Castaic Lake are adding a second boat to their fleet - a new 24-foot patrol craft - while sheriff's deputies patrolling Pyramid Lake just received a $70,000 state grant for a new vessel to carry out marine safety and enforcement.

The white, twin-engine boat is currently being outfitted, and will be put into service in early October to enforce Castaic Lake's 35 mph speed limit and perform safety inspections, county police Lt. Randy Budd said.

The new $140,000 vessel means a total of eight boats will patrol the upper reservoir and lower lake at the state-owned, county-run Castaic Lake Recreation Area. County lifeguards command six crafts for search and rescue operations, as well as issuing the occasional ticket.

``They can certainly use this new boat as a platform,'' Budd said. ``But it is meant for speed enforcement and safety checks.''

Though use of the lake is slowing as summer ends, county police remained

concerned about motorized boat safety, especially in the upper lake. Budd cited the January 2002 high-speed boat crash there that killed four people. The victims, testing a 30-foot catamaran, were traveling 90 mph to 120 mph when the boat flipped and capsized in 250 feet of water.

``We're out there every day,'' he said. ``We want to make sure they're following the law.''

Meanwhile, Los Angeles County supervisors last week accepted a $70,000 grant from the state Department of Boating and Waterways for a new sheriff's patrol boat at Pyramid Lake, about 20 miles north of Castaic. It'll likely take eight to nine months to procure, Deputy Paul Hardy said.

The Pyramid Lake station, about 60 miles north of Los Angeles, has four boats monitoring 1,360 acres of water, including a 1996 17-foot diesel boat just purchased from government surplus for a nominal fee.

Hardy, a 12-year veteran at the lake, said it's a constant battle keeping the fleet shipshape. A patrol boat's average life expectancy is about 15 years - though it could be extended to 20 with regular maintenance.

``The older the boat gets, the harder it is to get it up and running,'' he said. ``We're struggling - we're doing the best we can with what we got.''

But boat traffic at Pyramid has been lighter than usual - Hardy estimates up to a 15 percent decrease over the past two years. Fires, storms and even an oil spill have closed the recreation area for months at a time.

Eugene Tong, [phone]

eugene.tong(at)dailynews.com

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Photo:

Lt. Randy Budd of the Los Angeles County Police places the county seal on the new boat to be used at Castaic Lake.

David Crane/Staff Photographer