Bloglines - Failure to render aid at boat accident results in major penalties

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Boating - Topix.net News on Boating from Topix.net

Failure to render aid at boat accident results in major penalties A Sturgeon Bay man, Andrew R. Smith, 19, plead no contest in Door County Court on March 14, for failing to render aid in a boating accident and negligent operation of a boat.

Bloglines - $1.8m Case Win

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Boating - Topix.net News on Boating from Topix.net

$1.8m Case Win A MT Warrigal man has won $1.8million damages after losing a leg in a boating accident while spearfishing for lobster near Ulladulla.

Bloglines - Coast Guard brings weight issue to boating safety

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Boating - Topix.net News on Boating from Topix.net

Coast Guard brings weight issue to boating safety It's a topic none of us are really comfortable talking about but Coast Guard officials took your weight to task today and what they decide about just how much you weigh could directly affect your family's ...

Bloglines - Fitz urges tough drunken boating law

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Fitz urges tough drunken boating law Joe Zielinski's family spent countless idyllic summer days at Donnell Lake. They swam, they fished, they enjoyed bonfires together.

Bloglines - KSL Photographer Goes into Lake to Rescue Man

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KSL Photographer Goes into Lake to Rescue Man Accidents in the water can happen in a split second and have tragic results. But being prepared can save lives, as a man boating learned today.

Coast Guard drops ban on religious headgear in photos

NEW YORK Plaintiffs' lawyers say the Coast Guard has abandoned a rule requiring anyone seeking a merchant marine license to submit photographs showing no religious head coverings.The lawyers, from the New York Civil Liberties Union, sued the Coast Guard in federal court on behalf of Khalid Hakim, a devout Muslim who has served in the merchant marine while working for private shipping companies since 1973. Workers like Hakim are not members of the military but are required to obtain licenses to work on commercial ships that transport cargo in U-S waters.

The N-Y-C-L-U says the Coast Guard has directed field offices to accommodate religious beliefs and permit the use of photos with head coverings so long as the applicants can be identified.

Copyright 2006 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

Dwayne

Woman Injured When Fish Jumps Into Boat, Hits Her Face

The impact of the fish's bony plates caused Poirier to suffer severe facial injuries and fractures, requiring plastic surgery, her father, Ed White, 63, of St. Petersburg, told The Gainesville Sun.

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Never forget that big fish come equipped with weapons!  Take a first aid kit on the boat when you fish where the big fish eat and prepare for a medical emergency.

Dwayne

Bloglines - In Memoriam

Bloglines user Lawboat (lawboat@comcast.net) has sent this item to you, with the following personal message:

From the Brown Hound

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Brown Hound Thoughts of a Father, Virginian, Mustang Coastie, conservative, Episcopalian and dog lover.

In Memoriam By John 242056Z APR 06 ZUI ASN-A02114000022 FM COMLANTAREA COGARD PORTSMOUTH VA//ACS/AO/AOF/AOFP// TO ALLCOGARD LANT BT UNCLAS SUBJ: REMEMBERING A COAST GUARD HERO - DC3 NATHAN BRUCKENTHAL 1. 24 APRIL 2006 MARKS THE SECOND ANNIVERSARY OF THE LOSS OF DC3 NATHAN BRUCKENTHAL AND TWO USN SAILORS WHO WERE KILLED IN THE LINE OF DUTY WHILE CONDUCTING MARITIME INTERCEPT OPERATIONS (MIO) IN THE NORTH ARABIAN GULF. 2. DC3 BRUCKENTHAL WAS A PROUD COAST GUARDSMAN WHO SERVED HIS COUNTRY AND HIS FELLOW MAN WITH HONOR AND COMPASSION. HE WILLINGLY ENTERED INTO HARMS WAY TO PROTECT OUR NATION AND HIS FELLOW SERVICEMEN FROM TERRORISTS AND TO ASSIST THE PEOPLE OF IRAQ AS THEY PURSUE FREEDOM AND DEMOCRACY. AS A MEMBER OF TACLET SOUTH, HE EXEMPLIFIED HONOR, RESPECT AND MOST ESPECIALLY, DEVOTION TO DUTY. 3. THE ANNIVERSARY OF THIS INCIDENT PROVIDES AN EXCELLENT OPPORTUNITY FOR US TO REFLECT ON THE DANGEROUS LAW ENFORCEMENT, HOMELAND SECURITY AND NATIONAL DEFENSE MISSIONS OUR PEOPLE PREPARE TO PERFORM EACH AND EVERY DAY. WHETHER IT BE MIO IN THE PERSIAN GULF, AMIO AND COUNTER-DRUG BOARDINGS IN THE ATLANTIC AND CARIBBEAN OR HOMELAND SECURITY BOARDINGS WITHIN OUR BORDERS, THE THREATS FACING OUR OPERATIONAL PERSONNEL ARE GREATER NOW THAN EVER BEFORE. DESPITE THE PERCEIVED ROUTINE NATURE OF THESE MISSIONS, IT IS CRITICAL FOR US TO REMAIN EVER VIGILANT AND ALERT AS WE CONTINUE TO PERFORM THESE VITAL NATIONAL SECURITY MISSIONS. OUR ADVERSARIES ARE CONTINUOUSLY LOOKING FOR OUR WEAKNESSES AND SIGNS OF COMPLACENCY THAT THEY CAN EXPLOIT FOR THEIR BENEFIT. 4. ON THIS DAY PLEASE TAKE A FEW MOMENTS TO REMEMBER DC3 BRUCKENTHAL, REMIND OUR PEOPLE OF THE POTENTIAL THREATS THAT ARE ALWAYS LURKING IN THE SHADOWS, AND ENCOURAGE THEM TO CONTINUE TO BE ATTENTIVE, PROFESSIONAL AND SAFE. OUR NATION DEPENDS ON US. 5. INTERNET RELEASE AUTHORIZED. BT NNNN

www.estripes.com pic of the day

2005 Fla. boating deaths highest in 10 years

Boating deaths in Florida rose 2005 to the highest number reported in 10 years, but Lee and Collier counties reported only one fatality each among their 74,000-plus registered boats.

"We are very concerned about the upward trend in boating fatalities," said wildlife commission Capt. Richard Moore, Florida's boating law administrator. "Especially given the fact the vast majority of these are easily preventable."

Polk County had the highest number of fatalities in boating accidents in 2005, according to a report released this week by the state Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission.

Volusia County ranks sixth for boating accidents in the state.

Boating deaths and accidents surged in Florida Keys waters in 2005, keeping Monroe County in its dubious spot at the top of Florida's maritime mayhem.

Lee and Collier counties had only one fatality each among their 74,000-plus registered boats.

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The number of boats are rising with this State’s population and thus we can expect more of this unless boaters are educated and follow the rules.

Dwayne

Death, drama and indignation

Police call a drowning a tragic accident. Relatives suspect a cover-up. They have sued Paul Skipper and his son.

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This is intriguing.

Dwayne

Boating accident kills boy

After more than 10 hours of searching, rescue workers recovered the body of a 15-year-old Lenexa boy who fell off a boat and into Hillsdale Lake in Miami County on Sunday.

The youth was identified by the Miami County sheriff’s office as Austin Perry. He was pulled from the lake about 6:30 p.m. after about a dozen agencies, including Lee’s Summit, Wellsville and Overland Park dive teams and Kansas Search and Rescue Dog Association, helped in the search.

Authorities were notified at 7:55 a.m. after Perry and the operator of the boat, Donald N. Reynolds of Olathe, were tossed out of the boat at 7:15 a.m.

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Life jackets?

Dwayne

Rocks and Buck make for a bad day Boating

Man crashes boat, then hits a deer with his vehicle

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One of those days…..

Dwayne

Crazy in Margaritavile? "La La Land"? / Boating Accidents Florida Keys

Boat accidents far exceed any other part of the state

Boating deaths and accidents surged in Florida Keys waters in 2005, keeping Monroe County in its dubious spot at the top of Florida's maritime mayhem.

State officials noted that Monroe County's 29,990 registered boats rank well below several other more populous counties.

“All those other people are coming down here and don't know what they're doing,” said Duke Pontin from Sea Tow of the Florida Keys, based on Big Pine Key.

“They're on vacation and their minds are in LaLa Land while trying to navigate, and we've got some pretty tricky waters,” Pontin said.

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Keep a sharp watch if you are boating in the Keys!!

Dwayne

Search For Missing NY Boater Suspended in Miami

CBS4 News) VIRGINIA KEY The US Coast Guard has suspended its search for a young New York Man who went overboard while boating in Biscayne Bay Tuesday.

According to officials, the women boating with him originally found the man face down in the water but thought he was joking around. Upon returning to pick him out of the water, they realized it was an accident.

Dwayne

Boat fatality figures in state of Florida going overboard

The ocean drowning of two brothers was among 30 boating deaths statewide related to people falling or going overboard. And that was the leading cause of Florida in 2005 having the largest number of boating deaths in a decade, according to the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission's 2005 Boating Accident Statistical Report.

ROUGH WATER AHEAD??

People dying in connection with falling overboard was a leading cause of Florida having the largest number of boating fatalities — 80 — in 2005, state reports show. Thirty of those died from falling overboard, a 53 percent increase from 2004. There were five deaths along the Treasure Coast. Of the 30 deaths:

• 93 percent drowned, despite 63 percent being swimmers.

• 100 percent of the drowned were not wearing a life jacket.

• 79 percent fell were from an open motorboat or some small unstable craft.

• 69 percent occurred in calm, inland waters.

• 53 percent were more than 50 years old.

By the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission

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As you can see from the stats, accidents and deaths occur even in calm inland waters and life jackets were not being worn in 100 percent of the drowning deaths.

Dwayne

Gone on business

We will be gone on business and thus blogging will slow until next week.

Have a safe boating week and weekend.

 

Dwayne Clark and Kristen Watson

River Search Ends With No Sign Of Missing Man And Dog

JACKSONVILLE, FL -- The U.S. Coast Guard has suspended the search for a man and his dog who were thrown from their small boat as they tried to cross the choppy St. Johns River early Sunday morning.

Here is an update.  They found the body of this boater.

Dwayne

Is a flare gun a weapon?

Flare “guns” are made of metal or plastic and commonly fire aerial signals propelled by shortened 12-gauge shotgun shells, which can travel as far as 500 feet and burn for as long as seven seconds.

“Pistol-launched and hand-held parachute flares and meteors have many characteristics of a firearm and must be handled with caution,” a USCG safety bulletin states. “In some states they are considered a firearm and prohibited from use.”

Flare guns may not be weapons but can be dangerous if misused.  Check your state laws.

Dwayne

Two people killed in midstate Georgia boating accidents

The Georgia Department of Natural Resources is investigating two separate boating accidents during the weekend that left two people dead.
Two boats collided about 10 p.m. Friday on Jackson Lake in Butts County, killing a passenger, Capt. Barry Fincher, DNR region supervisor, said this morning.

Then Sunday, two boats hit head on at 2 a.m. on Jackson Lake in Jasper County, and a passenger died, Fincher said.

Fincher said night patrol will be beefed up in response to the fatalities.

 Dwayne

Tourist Killed In Broward Boating Accident

CBS News) DEERFIELD BEACH A New York man died Saturday in the waters off Deerfield Beach, after he tried to save a jet ski which had come loose from the boat in which he was riding.

Dwayne

Disabled sailors find sea legs with boating group

BAADS boys, (also known as the Bay Area Association of Disabled Sailors) is a group comprised of 125 sailors — about 65 percent of whom are disabled — who gather every weekend to sail the waters of San Francisco Bay.

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This looks like a neat organization.

Usually one’s only limitations are in the mind.

Dwayne

Paddlers have no reason to owe the state??

This is an interesting story on the State of Florida’s alleged efforts to regulate non-motorized boats.

Dwayne

Drunken Boating Accident in Orange County Gator infested Lake

A drunk man is left for dead in a chilly Orange County lake. Authorities say a boating accident sent a man overboard. He stayed in the water for more than an hour, while his friend tried to get away from deputies.

"As intoxicated as he was, he definitely couldn't swim."

The 28-year-old man spent ninety minutes in the cold, gator-filled Lake Tibet Butler. Sheriff's Commander Bruce McMullen says he ended up there after his drunk friend drove a boat into a dock, then into a tree, knocking him overboard.

"Once we arrived...the young man operating the boat appeared to flee from the helicopter."

Finally, rescuers pulled the man out of the water. Deputies caught the driver at his Bay Point Subdivision home. He's facing a charge of driving a boat while drunk.

"Too much alcohol. As we all know, alcohol and boating don't mix."

The stranded man suffered minor injuries, and possible hypothermia.

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Wow…..and people wonder why the laws are getting tougher?

Dwayne

High court upholds standard for claiming psychological trauma

LINCOLN, Neb. — The Nebraska Supreme Court on Friday rejected an appeal by a man who sought damages for psychological trauma from a deadly boating accident.

In doing so, the high court upheld Nebraska's standard for recovering damages for psychological trauma even though the victim was not physically injured.

Dwayne

"Standing Watch" keeps an eye on boating issues in Florida

Standing Watch, is said to be Florida's largest boater advocacy group. 

I don’t know much about this group but you can visit their web site at the above link.

Dwayne

Common sense is the best boating safety

According to national statistics, people without any boat safety training were 2.5 times more likely to have accidents. Teenagers were also more likely to be involved in wrecks. All these results are similar to what we experience with any other powered vehicle statistics and should be no surprise to anybody.

It should also be no surprise that when the people can't police themselves, the government sees the need to step in.

Dwayne

Boating with Your Dog

Here are some tips for boating with your dog.

Dwayne

 

S.S. Minnow - Woman Killed

BULLETIN: FORT LAUDERDALE -- The woman killed aboard the S.S. Minnow when it crashed into an unopened Andrews Avenue Bridge on the New River late Saturday was identified on Monday as Frances Eaton Strock, 75, of Deerfield Beach.

Dwayne

USCG to take action against propeller injuries

WASHINGTON - The National Boating Safety Advisory Council has issued a set of resolutions directing the U.S. Coast Guard to analyze and address propeller strike prevention efforts underway in the recreational boating industry, the National Marine Manufacturers Association reported yesterday.

The resolutions in summary can be found here.

Many of the resolutions have to do with the use of kill switches.  We have posted several articles about kill switches and how they could have saved injury and loss of life.

See also SPIN.

Dwayne

Ghaleb Tayfour - Fatal Hit and Run at Sea

Officials say fatal hit-and-run crash at sea hard to solve, especially as time passes

We have followed this story for a while now.  The authorities and family appear frustrated with the lack of evidence as to who killed this young man and fled the scene.  Any evidence that anyone has would be helpful.

Dwayne

Iowa House rejects change in boating bill

This is a bill following a boating crash that killed a dentist named Brosnahan.  We have followed this story for some time.  This is the kind of legislation that follows horrific accidents and hit and run boating.  If folks don’t want tighter boating laws they need to learn how to behave on the water.

Dwayne

Hypothermia

Hypothermia is a an insidious killer. 

See this site on Hypothermia.

Dwayne

Boating Safety Bill Clears Okla. House

 Boating Safety Bill Clears Okla. House

Senate Bill 1495, by State Sen. Kenneth Corn (D-Poteau) and State Rep. Ken Miller, would create the "Kyle Williams Boating Safety Education Act," prohibiting anyone under the age of 12 from operating a vessel with a motor in excess of 10 horsepower or any sailboat more than 16 feet long.

The bill, named after a 12-year-old Edmond boy who was killed in a jet-ski accident in August 2004, also requires children between the ages of 12 and 16 to complete a boater safety education course and be accompanied by an adult before being allowed to operate such vessels.

"Oklahoma is one of only eight states that don't require any boater education for teenagers and children prior to operating a boat," said Miller, R-Edmond. "

Dwayne

Hero Missionaries Make the Ultimate Sacrifice in Boating Accident

Two Arkansas missionaries die in boating accident

By all accounts these two men gave their lives so that two younger men could live.

Dwayne

Boat and Serve Your Country at the Same Time

Times…they are a changing.  I have posted a fair amount of stuff on homeland security.  In those posts there were discussions about the limitations of the Coast Guard due to low budgets and lack of people. 

The Coast Guard has a new program wherein they are asking for the public’s help with homeland security.  It it is a good idea and one that is a must given the limitations of the Coast Guard.  If you care you should write your Congressperson and ask that they support an increase in the Coast Guard’s budget as we need them.

This new program is called America’s Waterway Watch.  The program allows all of us to serve our Country while enjoying our favorite pastime of boating.

In the site the Coast Guard says this:

America's Waterway Watch is similar to the Coast Watch program of World War II, which caused the early growth of the Coast Guard Auxiliary, a group of citizen-volunteers who were mobilized as a uniformed, civilian component of the Coast Guard to scan the coast for U-boats and saboteurs attempting to infiltrate the shores of the United States. Today, America's Waterway Watch goes one step further: It calls on ordinary citizens like you -  who spend much of their on and around America's waterways - to assist in the War on Terrorism on the Domestic Front.

The Coast Guard explains why they need your help:

The enemy this nation faces today is unlike any other in our history. The operatives who may be attempting to enter the United States via our waterfront areas, whether as stowaways on ships entering our ports or on pleasure craft entering our marinas, do not wear a uniform or carry arms openly. They have chosen to attack us using unconventional warfare, and we  must be prepared to report events such as people entering our country illegally along the hundreds of miles of coastline, and people preparing to attack our critical infrastructure. America's Waterway Watch calls on all port and waterfront users to report suspicious activity in and around the area where they live, work and play.

 

Dwayne

Shark bites boy near Marco Island

 

Lesson here….NEVER jump into a school of jumping bait fish!!

They may be running from something big.

Dwayne

Editorial: Boating, alcohol a deadly combination

U.S. Coast Guard statistics show that from 2000 to 2004, nearly 45 percent of fatal boating accidents in Wisconsin were alcohol related. That's too many.

Based on current levels in most States is is simply better not to drink and drive any kind of motorized vehicle.  Its not safe and its not legal except at very minimal levels.   Why take the chance?

Dwayne

Conservationists Sue to Keep Motors out of Grand Canyon

From the Environmental News Network

Four environmental and river rafting groups are suing the National Park Service in an attempt to stop helicopter flights and motorized rafting in the Grand Canyon.

They said:

“We feel like we're going to battle on behalf of all American citizens. They deserve to have the Grand Canyon designated as wilderness," said Jo Johnson, co-director of River Runners for Wilderness.

Sen. Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, attached a rider to a 1981 bill that would block any federal funds from being used to support removal of motorized boats from Grand Canyon, even if they were only used for drawing up planning documents.

The Park Service reversed course on its mission to phase out motorized boating following Hatch's move and hasn't attempted again since.

A proposal to designate most of the Grand Canyon as wilderness was put forth by Grand Canyon managers in 1993 and has never been transmitted to Congress or any president since, as would be required, according to the Colorado River Management Plan.

Here in Florida we have many waterways that are designated as no-motor zones.  It seems (to me) that there should be a way to balance folks having fun on the water with protecting the environment and wilderness. 

Dwayne

Literature

The Old Man and the Sea on Imax

Dwayne

Art

Mary Cassatt Mother And Child In A Boat

Airboat flips over in Everglades, killing driver

MIAMI (AP) -- A state wildlife official says an airboat flipped over in the Everglades, killing its 26-year-old driver.

Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission spokesman Jorge Pino says Ryan Anthony Carraway of Fort Myers was pronounced dead at a Miami hospital.

It wasn't immediately clear how Carraway lost control of the single-passenger airboat in the Francis S. Taylor Wildlife Management Area of the Everglades.

Pino said his agency was not sure how fast the driver was going.

(Copyright 2006 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.This material may not be may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)

Dwayne

Locals aid in search for missing teen and now Second Drowning

 

CLAY COUNTY -- Putnam County Rescue Squad members have been among emergency workers this week who came from nearby counties to assist Clay County emergency personnel in searching for a missing teen, who authorities believe drowned after a boating accident.

Jonathan Hudson, a 16-year-old Lafayette resident, reportedly fell from a small boat into Dale Hollow Lake on Monday while on spring break with his friends. He never resurfaced and has not been found.

Now there has been a second drowning in the same small lake.

This is an update on the story.

Dwayne