Some emergency rooms were full at times and two clinics reported large surges in walk-in patients but life without an ER in Oxnard got off to a relatively smooth start Wednesday, according to healthcare officials.

St. John's Regional Medical Center's emergency room closed at 7 a.m. Wednesday as staff prepare to shut down the entire hospital Aug. 14 so it can be fumigated for mold. The hospital is scheduled to reopen Aug. 24 though possible delays in state approval could mean a longer closure.

Several hospitals in the county reported seeing a few more patients but said they were well-staffed and able to handle the increase.

"I think it went well. Everyone's very prepared, of course," said Mike Powers, director of the Ventura County Health Care Agency, noting that there were a handful of additional patients at the county medical center's emergency room and at Magnolia Urgent Care in Oxnard, close to St. John's.

The emergency room at St. John's Pleasant Valley Hospital in Camarillo saw more walk-in patients and at times was at capacity, said hospital administrator Jerry Conway, but had no problems dealing with the increase.

Community Memorial Hospital in Ventura was full Wednesday morning but patients were moving quickly through the system. Los Robles Hospital & Medical Center in Thousand Oaks reported no problems.

Some clinics reported no increases but two medical centers operated by Clinicas del Camino Real in Oxnard have seen far more walk-in patients all week long in an influx leaders attribute to people reacting first to the news and on Wednesday to the reality of the emergency room closure.

"They're just getting overwhelmed with the number of patients," said Clinicas CEO Roberto Juarez, referring to the Maravilla Clinic on Clara Street. A clinic on Meta Street also saw increases.

Juarez said the added patients haven't caused any serious problems yet but said he may have to adjust staffing of doctors.

At St. John's, a green fence stands in front of the closed ER and signs have been covered with plastic or tape. White-tented information booths are aimed at helping people who don't know about the closure.

But as of Wednesday afternoon, hospital officials said they didn't have to refer any of the people who came to the information booths to other hospitals.

"Pretty good so far," said St. John's President T. Michael Murray, assessing the first day of the closure. "Knock on wood."

Barry Fisher, administrator for Ventura County Emergency Services, said it was a quiet day for ambulances. As of a mid-afternoon report, only a half-dozen ambulances that could have normally gone to St. John's in Oxnard were sent to hospitals in Ventura and Camarillo, he said.

"I feel pretty good, but it's still early in the closure," he said.

— Staff writer Michelle Klampe contributed to this report.