Officials urge caution as SouthCoast boating season gets underway. How to stay safe.

With the upcoming Memorial Day weekend the official start of the boating season, and it being National Safe Boating Week, safety is the key word.

“Typically, we like to give information out to the public before you get ready to set sail and get underway on any body of water in Massachusetts,” Massachusetts Environmental Police Lt. John Girvalakis said.

The Environmental Police are responsible for enforcing boating and recreational vehicle laws and regulations and patrol both inland and coastal waters, ensuring compliance with safety rules.

They focus on ensuring that boaters follow safety guidelines, including wearing life jackets and adhering to speed limits.

Girvalakis said that includes making sure all your safety equipment is up to date, in good order and does not show signs of deterioration as well as making sure it’s Coast Guard-approved and in compliance with state and federal regulations.

He said it’s also important that you know how to use the equipment and that you make sure that any passengers know where the life jackets are and how to use them. If boating on coastal waters, make sure you have a VHF marine radio and know how to use it under different circumstances.

He said boaters can find all kinds of information they need to know before setting sail and without going to a boating safety class by visiting https://www.mass.gov/info-details/boating-safety and looking under the Safety Bureau tab find Boat Massachusetts: Your Guide to Boating Laws and Responsibilities.

Free boating safety classes are available

It’s a free PDF download, but publications can also be found free of charge at any vehicle and boat registration sites and are handed out at boat safety classes statewide and through the Coast Guard Auxiliary.

He said anyone interested in taking a boating safety class is encouraged to do so, and there is information on how to take a Massachusetts-approved course online. There is also information on the website about how to take a free classroom course at different locations.

There is also information on how to take courses with the Coast Guard Auxiliary and U.S. Power Squadron online for a fee. There is also an online course through Boat Ed for a fee.

Girvalakis said life jackets serve a purpose and that wearing one will help keep you afloat in case you end up in the water.

“They are made to be worn,” he said. “We encourage people to wear them, especially in paddle crafts, including canoes, kayaks and standup paddleboards. The law applies to those vessels just like they do for all other boats. They have to be on board.”

He said on average nationwide, about 70% of the people involved in boating fatalities are not wearing life jackets.

Regarding alcohol consumption, he said it is legal to have alcohol on boats, and open containers are allowed, but there are boating under the influence laws, with the blood alcohol concentration of .08 is the same as for a motor vehicle. He said having a designated boat operator who can operate the boat is encouraged.

He said alcohol combined with environmental stressors such as motion, sun glare and wind wave on a can be magnified by three times when on a boat and reduce response and reaction times.

Boats must be at least 150 feet from any shoreline being used as a swimming area whether public or private, and from that 150-foot mark, out to 300 feet, at headway speed only, not to exceed 6 mph. If the swim area is marked with buoys, it’s at least 75 feet from the markers. It’s a 100-foot setback away from divers with flags.

Not as many boating causalities

Girvalakis said it’s relatively safe on the water, although they do see some people bending the rules, which is another reason for taking a boater safety class. There is no mandatory boater education, and there is no boater licensing in the state.

He said knowing the navigation rules when it comes to buoy and channel markers and having up-to-date safety equipment are important but noted that Massachusetts doesn’t have the level of boating casualties as other states.

“There’s a significant presence, too, with our agency, local harbormasters, State Police and local police marine units being created regularly to not only serve as a deterrent but as a response to an incident,” he said.

If a boat operator is operating under the influence of alcohol or drugs, he said the penalty is similar to the driver of a vehicle including loss of license, but the boat operator could also lose their vessel registration through suspension or revocation, as well as their boat registration, with possible jail time and fines.

He said there are federal regulations for boating in coastal waterways for boaters caught using marijuana while operating a boat, but in Massachusetts, there are no regulations for marijuana use on boats since its use was legalized.

He said having fire extinguishers on board is also encouraged because several fires have occurred due to explosive vapors and fumes igniting on board boats.

If boating after dark, he suggests making sure your navigation lights are operational, and if operating a canoe or a similar vessel, at a minimum having a white light.

Coast Guard releases accident data

In 2022, recreational boating accidents claimed 636 lives and injured 2,222 people, according to the U.S. Coast Guard. Those 4,040 incidents caused some $63 million in property damage.

The vast majority of fatal crashes in 2022 happened on boats where the operator had not received boating safety instruction, according to the Coast Guard.

In Massachusetts, there were five fatalities in 2022, compared to six in 2021, according to Coast Guard casualty data.

A tow boat captain’s take

Captain Clint Allen, owner of TowBoatUS New Bedford since 2004, works out of a prime boating destination and knows the risks if proper safety measures aren’t taken.

He recommends that anyone heading out on the water have a VHF marine radio and a GPS unit from a local marine store on board and learn how to use it beforehand in case they lose their way or if there is an emergency before or after dark.

He said boating sales skyrocketed during the COVID years because people bought boats to spend time with family and friends away from other people, but it seemed like they didn’t know enough about boating safety.

“We saw an uptick in novice boater behavior,” he said.

Allen responds to calls in Buzzards Bay and the Islands and goes out on 500 jobs a year, primarily during boating season in June, July, August and September, and said a search on Google can direct anyone to a boating safety course that will teach them boating safety.

“There are so courses available, and that’s what we recommend for people – from BoatUS training that went online for free to the local Coast Guard Auxiliary to the Power Squadron – and they all offer basic navigation courses and basic seamanship courses, enough for a beginner boater to be safe,” he said.

Allen said you can buy a boat and operate it without any special license, and there is no mandatory course to take before you start boating, and he still questions it because safety is number one.

Standard-Times staff writer Kathryn Gallerani can be reached at kgallerani@gannett.com. Follow her on Twitter: @kgallreporter. Support local journalism by purchasing a digital or print subscription to The Standard-Times today.

This article originally appeared on Standard-Times: Safety comes first as SouthCoast boaters gear up for Memorial Day weekend