Callers mistake Coast Guard flare training for plane crash after agency forgot to inform city

Coast Guard training prompt 911 calls in Alaska

ANCHORAGE, Alaska — To some 911 callers, it looked like a fiery plane crash just offshore of downtown Anchorage. Others thought it was a boat in trouble.

The Coast Guard was practicing shooting emergency flares during a rescue exercise Tuesday morning, but no one informed city authorities who hustled fire crews to the scene after getting as many as half a dozen reports from worried callers.

The Coast Guard says it won’t happen again.

Petty Officer David Mosley says such yearly training exercises are usually conducted at a range at nearby Fort Richardson, but space was not available for Tuesday’s flare practice.