By Kathy Hart 



On the water, an ounce of 

 prevention may be worth more 

 than a pound of cure. It may be 

 worth your life and that of your 

 family and friends, say U.S. Coast 

 Guard officers. 



"Today the Coast Guard definite- 

 ly puts more emphasis on accident 

 prevention and boating safety," says 

 Lt. Martin Phillips. "Any time we 

 can prevent someone from having 

 to be rescued, we're all better off. 

 On the water, it's often hard to 

 locate a boater in distress, and you 

 don't always have a lot of time." 



Most deaths among recreational 

 boaters occur because life jackets 

 are not worn. 



"Often the jackets are accessible 

 but not on," Phillips says. "Some- 

 thing happens quickly, and boaters 

 are in the water before they know 

 it. They end up drowning because 

 they didn't have their life jacket 

 on." 



And, drinking and boating is just 

 as much of a problem on the water 

 as it is on the road. In fact, Phillips 

 estimates that more than 50 per- 

 cent of all fatal boating accidents 

 involve alcohol. 



"On the water, fatigue sets in 

 quickly when you have a beating 

 sun, whipping winds and wave 

 after wave," Phillips says. "Reason- 

 ing fades quicker. Mix alcohol into 

 that, and you have a serious prob- 

 lem with a person's ability to re- 

 spond and react." 



Stricter federal and state boating 

 laws limit boating while intoxicat- 

 ed. To enforce those laws, Phillips' 

 crews administer breathalyzer tests. 



Recreational boaters are consid- 

 ered intoxicated if the test results 

 are .10 or higher; commercial oper- 

 ators, .04 or higher. 



But Phillips adds that drinking is 

 usually not a problem among com- 

 mercial fishermen. 



A sound boating education can 

 go a long way toward avoiding 

 mishaps on the water, says Lt. 

 Cmdr. Dale Ward. 



"The boating public needs to be 

 educated about the dangers of 

 operating a boat and what can hap- 

 pen on the water," he says. 



Ward suggests that all boaters 

 enroll in a seamanship course 

 taught by the Coast Guard Aux- 

 iliary or the U.S. Power Squadron. 

 Auxiliary members will also con- 

 duct a free courtesy examination of 

 your boat and safety equipment. 



But Phillips and Ward agree that 

 with more boaters using our coast- 

 al waters it may be time to con- 

 sider a boating license. A license 

 would ensure proper training and 

 establish a minimum driving age. 



Rough seas at Wrightsville Beach. 



Photo by Gene Furr 



