Boating Safety Tips For the 4th of July

June 26, 2017

Sport Fisherman Hunter Bland Has Tips on How to Stay Safe on the Water

Hunter Bland, Sport Fisherman

(Manassas, VA, Monday, June 26, 2017) – Sport fisherman Hunter Bland and his teammate of the University of Florida Bass Fishing Team were almost seriously injured when they were thrown from their boat due to a hydraulic steering part failure. Now, Hunter has joined with the National Safe Boating Council to remind others about the importance of responsible boating during this summer’s highest-boating traffic weekend – the Fourth of July.

Hunter shares these tips on how to stay safe on the water this upcoming holiday weekend.

SOUNDBITE #1:

MAKE SURE EVERYONE IS WEARING A U.S. COAST GUARD-APPROVED LIFE JACKET. CHECK YOUR EQUIPMENT AND SCHEDULE A FREE VESSEL SAFETY CHECK WITH YOUR LOCAL U-S COAST GUARD AUXILIARY OR U-S POWER SQUADRONS TO MAKE SURE YOU HAVE ALL ESSENTIAL EQUIPMENT BEFORE HEADING OUT ON THE WATER. BE SURE TO USE AN ENGINE CUT-OFF DEVICE – IT’S A PROVEN SAFETY DEVICE TO STOP THE BOAT’S ENGINE SHOULD THE OPERATOR UNEXPECTEDLY FALL OVERBOARD. CHECK THE WEATHER FORECAST BEFORE AND DURING YOUR EXCURSION.

SOUNDBITE #2:

LET A LOVED ONE KNOW WHERE YOU’RE BOATING AND WHEN YOU EXPECT TO RETURN. ALWAYS KNOW WHAT’S GOING ON AROUND YOU AND TRAVEL AT SAFE SPEEDS. NEARLY A QUARTER OF ALL REPORTED BOATING ACCIDENTS LAST YEAR WERE CAUSED BY OPERATOR INATTENTION OR IMPROPER LOOKOUT. NEVER BOAT UNDER THE INFLUENCE. A B-U-I IS INVOLVED IN ONE-THIRD OF ALL RECREATIONAL BOATING FATALITIES. AND FINALLY, KEEP IN TOUCH. CELL PHONES, E-P-I-R-Bs, PERSONAL LOCATOR BEACONS, AND V-H-F RADIOS CAN HELP RESCUE ASSETS QUICKLY GET TO YOU IN AN EMERGENCY.

For more information, visit www.safeboatingcampaign.com. The campaign is produced under a grant from the Sports Fish Restoration and Boating Trust Fund, administered by the U.S. Coast Guard.

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