Boater Safety: The Dangers of BUI
Boating should be a fun and pleasurable experience and no one should ever have to be fearful of his or her safety. The truth is that operating a boat under the influence is just as dangerous as driving a vehicle. Actually, a boater is likely to become impaired more quickly than a driver, drink for drink. Not only is boating under the influence (of either drugs or alcohol) illegal in every single state, it is also against federal law imposed by the Coast Guard.
The U.S. Coast Guard makes it a priority to inform boaters about proper boater safety and teach people about the dangers involved. Coast Guard data revealed that in boating deaths that involved alcohol use, over half the victims capsized the boat or fell overboard. Alcohol impairs judgment, reflexes, vision, balance, and coordination. This may all sound like a rehash of what you’ve heard before, but the marine environment can speed up the effects of alcohol and make it worse. The sun, motion, vibration, and wind act as accelerants.
Less boater experience can also making a BUI much more dangerous. Driving down the road is a fairly simple act when sober. But operating a large boat requires much more work and therefore, a drunk person will have even greater difficulty operating it. Many recreational boaters just don’t know what it’s like to be on a boat with other drivers every day. Actually, the average boater only spends about 110 hours on his boat a year.
There is a lot to know about boat safety, but when you’re not clear headed, you are putting yourself and everyone else in the water at risk. Alcohol will make it harder to assess situations and make good decisions. Vision becomes very impaired, especially at night. It also provides a physical sensation of warmth which can prevent a person from getting out of cold water. If caught with a BUI, you can be forced to pay large fines, have your boating privileges revoked, or serve jail time.
There are easy ways to prevent a dangerous situation with good boating safety. Take plenty of water, juice, and other drinks on board. Also have plenty of food and snacks to help absorb alcohol if you are going to drink. Try drinking list of heavy construction equipment offshore instead and wait a reasonable amount of time before you operate the boat again. Honestly the best solution is to just not drink at all, especially while on board. Intoxicated people are much more likely to fall overboard.
Always use your best judgment and educate others on good boat safety accessories of milling machine pdf measures. Don’t let alcohol and drugs ruin your boating experience.…