It’s the midst of summertime, and that means the waters are filled with boaters. Whether experienced or new, it’s always a good time to have a refresh on boating safety; from regulations for safety to common sense practices on the water.

Boating regulations vary from region to region. Familiarize yourself and others who will be joining you on the water with safe boating practices. Owning a boat comes with the responsibility of the safety of all your passengers and other boaters on the water.

• Keep a Float Plan by leaving details of your trip with someone responsible onshore, including emergency contact information.
• Keep in touch with the latest weather conditions. If caught in severe weather, wear your personal flotation devices, store loose items and equipment, reduce your speed, and head for safe refuge. Avoid fog whenever possible. If fog does set in, log bearings, course, and speed. Sound a loud, five second blast once a minute via your horn, whistle, or other
  loud measure.
• Be aware of your actions and don’t hoard the boat launch. If you’re having issues and a line is forming, move out of the way and let the others launch first.
• Never overload or unevenly distribute weight on your boat to avoid steering issues.
• Never let anyone sit anywhere on the boat not designed for sitting. While underway, keep passengers seated in designated seating areas.
• Keep extra caution when cruising in shallow water in case of sand bars, rocks, water levels affected by tide, and other hazards. If an underwater hazard is struck, check for hull, engine, and propeller damage. If you run aground, seek help by radio, flares, or other visual markers.
• In case of emergency, the spoken word ‘Mayday’ via VHF radio is the international signal of distress. Do not use this word unless if there is an emergency.

Personal Flotation Devices (PFDs) 

The United States Coast Guard (USCG) requires one type I, II, III, or V personal flotation device (PFD) for each passenger onboard. These PFDs must be designs approved by the USCG and the correct size for the wearer for emergency situations. The PFDs must be easy to access and don in case of an emergency (not placed in locked or non-easily accessible areas). A PFD should be worn at all times your boat is operating; it needs to be on in order to save your life. Some states require PFD’s be worn by children under a certain age at all times. In addition, all boats over 16’ are required to carry at least one type IV PFD. Type IV PFDs are throwable and must be available for immediate deployment at all times while on the water. You can find more information on PFDs on the USCG website: https://www.dco.uscg.mil/CG-ENG-4/PFDSel/

Safety Labels

Safety labels are broken into four categories: Danger, Warning, Caution, and Notice. Familiarize yourself with all the labels onboard your boat to ensure ongoing performance of all components.

Rules of the Road

• Be aware of boats with less maneuverability, such as larger vessels, sailboats, vessels engaged in idle activities (such as fishing, diving, or dredging), or a vessel run aground. These boats have priority right-of-way.
• When meeting a boat head on, keep to the right whenever possible.
• When two or more boats intersect, the boat to the right has the right of way. Seeing green starboard navigation lights on the other vessel signifies you have the right-of-way, whereas red signifies the other boat has the right-of-way.
• When overtaking another vessel, the vessel being overtaken has the right-of-way.
• Use defensive driving skills as you would while driving a car. If another boater doesn’t know or isn’t following the rules of the road, it’s in your control to avoid a collision.
• Cross waves as perpendicularly as possible to help avoid rolling.
• If caught in heavy waves, head directly into them or at a slight angle at a reduced speed.