Boat Accidents

[Kevin]

Boat Accidents

Boating PR News/ -- Every year, millions of Americans enjoy boating on our nation's waterways. According to the National Association of State Boating Law Administrators, (NASBLA), 12,875,568 vessels were registered in 2007, representing a one percent increase over 2006. Unfortunately, those number also represent the potential for boating accidents that cause injury, disability and death every year.

NASBLA's 2007 National Recreational Boating Safety Program Executive Summary reports the following statistics:

The number of deaths dropped from 710 in 2006 to 685 in 2007

Other casualty figures increased:

- Accidents rose from 4967 to 5191
- Injuries rose from 3474 to 3673
- Damages rose from $43,670,424 to $53,106,496

Over two-thirds of all fatal boating accident victims drowned, and of those, ninety percent were not wearing a life jacket. Three out of every four who drowned were boating on vessels less than twenty-one feet in length. Half of the sixteen children who died in boating accidents died from drowning.

Fourteen percent of deaths occurred on vessels where the operator had received boating safety instruction

The most common types of vessels involved in reported accidents were:

- Open motorboats (44%)
- Personal watercraft (24%)
- Cabin motorboats (15%)

The top five primary contributing factors in boating accidents are:

- Operator inattention
- Operator inexperience
- Careless/reckless operation
- Passenger/skier behavior
- Excessive speed
- Alcohol use ( the leading factor in accident and in 21% of all boating deaths)

Additional causes of boating accidents may include negligence in boat operation or maintenance, engine failure, defective instrumentation or boat parts, and improper or negligent equipment storage and baggage storage.

These statistics do not calculate personal and property damage that can occur on a boat due to someone's violent behavior, injury or death while swimming or snorkeling in the water or diving from the boat, due to environmental issues or while the boat is docked. Actually, 65 people were injured and 36 lost their lives in 2007 in boating accidents that occurred while the boat was docked.

Obviously, for all its pleasures, boating presents a number of harmful or potentially dangerous situations that can cause untold misery for victims. Regardless of the reason for your accident or injury, you can consult with a qualified personal injury attorney to file a lawsuit for damages, which will help pay for your medical bills, lost wages, property damage and pain and suffering. Even for minor injuries, prompt medical evaluation is wise. Long-term physical and emotional results may not be apparent at the outset, and medical treatment may be needed beyond emergency treatment for immediate injuries. If a family member has lost their life in boating accident, you can file a wrongful death suit.

[UNKs]

This is great information and knowledge to be shared.  I would like to give my advice/experience/2cents, particularly pertaining to Lake Monroe.

Noting the contributing factors, one can easily identify an example that they have seen first hand on the lake.  Reducing the effects that these factors may have, will come in reducing the influence and amount that they occur.

-Driver inattention
     - Examples are:  driving while watching skier/tuber, driving while talking with someone, sight seeing.  All of these are also normally done at too high a rate of speed.  Reaction time is slowed, mainly because of......
-Driver inexperience (lack of knowing what to do at a certain time)
    - Newer drivers should take it a step at a time.  Having a checklist, that is constantly being gone over like knowing the surrounding watercraft in the area at that moment, will help familiarize oneself with proper driving techniques and increase safety.  Also identifying someone in the boat to certain tasks, such as watching the skier/tuber, looking out for other watercraft, etc.  A lot of the inattentiveness and inexperience is because people think individually on the lake and not as a whole part of the lake, how everyone is interacting/effecting each other.
-Careless and Reckless operation
     - These people shouldn't be using boats.  The idea that nothing will happen, and it's a car on water will ruin multiple people's weekend.  Drivers attention should always be on the water and surrounding boats, nothing else.
-Passenger behavior
     -  Everyone is under the responsibility of the driver.  Drivers need to make sure passengers understand expectations and rules before even leaving the dock.  Skiers should never be a reason for accident, as they are at the mercy of the driver and other drivers.
- Excessive speed.
     -  You know that tube you have.  Look at the warnings.  More than likely says to not pull at excessive speeds, likely over 18mph, due to rider safety as well as the integrity of the tube.  Now think of how fast you see everyone pulling a tube, especially with little kids on them.  Fast is not always fun.
-Alcohol
    - Too many people associate boating with alcohol.  Littering, yelling, dumb boating maneuvers.  All should be prevented by fellow boaters and reported. 


I do not want this to be taken as me telling people what to do.  My goal, before this was ever posted, was to make Lake Monroe a safer place to boat in 2010.  Being on the water for most of the time, I am able to see what all goes on, and know that those whom this forum reaches are not likely the offenders.  However, I want to take steps to educating and growing the experienced driver base and reach around Monroe, so please let me know what you may like, desire, or anything you would like to add.

 My first action is to educate on driving for tubing, and how dangerous it is/ruins the lake for everyone else.  Tubing is fun, and it's fun to watch someone hang on through tough times.  However, you will normally see the driver more attentive to what the tuber is doing, and not what other boats are in the area.  This in turn means the boat is driving erratically in an area, with little knowledge of the surroundings.  The idea to get someone off a tube also creates erratic driving, and posing great danger to the boat, tuber, and fellow boats in the area.  Tubing also ruins the water for most other boaters' activities.  Tubing is best done in the middle of the lake, away from other boaters, and there is no need for smooth water, leave that for the skiers/others that can take advantage of it.  Also remember that the waves created are always going out, so those circles have now sent rollers in every direction of the lake, effecting anyone/everyone in the area.

Please let add any thoughts, and any topics others would like to see.  I think it would be great to do a driver education/update session on the water as well, once it warms up.