One Summer Worry - Boating Accidents

Operating a boat on the water is comparable with operating a motor vehicle on land: accidents happen. Just as a driver of a motor vehicle can use safety precautions in operating their vehicle, an operator of a vessel (including an open motorboat, personal watercraft, cabin motorboat, sailboat, canoe, kayak, or pontoon) can use safety precautions in operating their vessel.
In providing a few stories from the Chicago Tribune to show that accidents happen to the inexperienced and experienced alike, and information provided by the United States Coast Guard, we will show you that safety matters, whether on land or in the water.

For example, recently, the Chicago Tribune reported that a woman was operating a boat. The boat was connected to a floating tube, which carried her 10-year-old daughter and two other children. The woman made a sharp left turn and a fourth child, in the boat, fell and starting screaming. As the woman reached to help the child, the boat turned in a circle and struck the floating tube. The three children on the tube were knocked off. r>
Two of the children were rescued shortly after the accident, but the woman’s daughter could not be found. Her daughter’s life vest was discovered during a search that was suspended a few hours after the accident. When the search continued the next morning, the girl was found dead. (Andrew L. Wang and Melissa Jenco, “Boat accident victim found dead.” Chicago Tribune (Aug. 19, 2011) available at http://articles.chicagotribune.com/2011-08-19/news/ct-met-michigan-boat-accident-0819-20110819_1_boat-accident-victim-south-elgin-life-vest)

The United States Coast Guard website is a great resource for boating safety. All the following information can be found through the U.S. Coast Guard website, at http://www.uscgboating.org/, but you will need to search the site to find the same information that is organized in an easy manner below, for your convenience. The discussion starts with the U.S. Coast Guard 2011 Statistics, and is followed by information on contributing factors of accidents, life jacket wear, creating a float plan, accident reporting, and additional links for further information.

Operation of vessel accidents, deaths and injuries occur while anchor, being towed, changing direction or speed, cruising (proceeding normally, unrestricted, with an absence of drastic rudder or engine changes), docking or undocked, drifting (underway, but proceeding over the bottom without use of engines, oars or sails; carried by the tide, current or wind), idling, launching or loading, rowing or paddling, sailing, tied to dock or moored, towing, or trolling. The number one activity in accidents, deaths and injuries from operation of vessel was boating and relaxation (3735 out of 5939 vessels involved); the number two activity was fishing (675 vessels involved); and the number three activity was towed watersports (595 vessels involved).

The most commonly rented vessel, in 2011, was the open motorboat, followed by the personal watercraft and cabin motorboat. An open motorboat is a craft of open construction specifically built for operating with a motor, including boats canopied or fitted with temporary partial shelters.

The deceased victims in 2011 ranged from age 1 to 80 and over, though the average age of deceased victims was 12-80 and over, particularly around age 40-50. The injured victims in 2011 ranged from age 1 to 80 and over, with ages 20-30 having the most injuries. Injuries primarily included broken bones and lacerations, though there were some burns, carbon monoxide poisonings, concussions, dislocations, hypothermia injuries, scrapes or bruises, and sprains or strains. There were a few electric shocks, amputations and spinal cord injuries.

Alcohol and drug use is the leading contributing factor in fatal boating accidents. It was listed as the leading factor in 16% of the deaths in 2011. In Illinois there has been an increase in accidents involving alcohol from 14 accidents in 2007 to 18 accidents in 2011. There were 11 deaths from boating accidents in both 2007 and 2009, and 15 deaths in 2008. The number as decreased to 4 and 3 deaths in 2010 and 2011, respectively. There were 38 injuries, each year in 2007 and 2008, involving alcohol. In 2011, the number decreased to 11 injuries involving alcohol.

Excessive speed is speed above which a reasonable and prudent person would operate under the conditions that existed and is not necessarily a speed in excess of a post limit. Failure to ventilate is when, prior to starting the engine, there is a failure to turn on the powered ventilation system that brings in “fresh air” and expels gasoline vapors form the engine compartment. Improper lookout is when no person aboard a vessel takes proper watch to perceive dangers, including by sight and hearing, as to make sure there are no risks of collision.

Operator inexperience can range from no experience to hours upon hours of experience but inexperience with one specific detail of the vessel. Most accidents occurred where the experience was either unknown (ranging from no experience to over 500 hours of experience) or the operator had 101-500 hours of experience. In 2011, only 11% of deaths occurred on boats where the operator had received boating safety instruction. Only 7% of deaths occurred on vessels where the operator had received boating safety instruction from a NASBLA - approved course provider. In 2011, most accidents occurred with operators ages 36- to 55-years-old, where there were only one or two people aboard. Most accidents occurred where the operator was “uneducated” (as opposed to being part of the American Red Cross, taking an internet or state course, or part of the U.S. Power squadrons or U.S.C.G. Auxiliary).

Other contributing factors of accidents and casualties in 2011 regarding the operation of a vessel included inadequate on board navigation lights, and operation inattention, rules of the road infraction, sharp turn, starting fear, restricted vision (includes poor, fair, and good) and improper loading or weight distribution.