Stay safe on the water this Memorial Day weekend

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The Memorial Day weekend marks the unofficial start of summer, and the U.S. Corps of Engineers and the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission are urging Twin Lakes Area residents and tourists to use caution when out on the area’s waterways.

Safety should be a top priority for anyone spending time on a boat or in the water this weekend, and the AFGC and Corps of Engineers offer the following tips to assure everyone has a fun but safe experience on the rivers and lakes.

Park rangers caution that parks, lakes and rivers will be congested, and they’re asking visitors to be courteous while waiting at boat ramps, sharing the shore or traveling across the water.

Rangers are also stressing the importance of life jackets. Visitors arriving at Corps lakes without a life jacket can check with a gate attendant or a volunteer camp host about a loaner.

Game and Fish officials stress that everyone on board must have a wearable properly-fitted personal floatation device (PFD), like a life jacket, readily accessible on the boat. The PFD cannot be locked up in a compartment, or if it was recently purchased, it needs to be removed from its plastic or any other container. Wearing the PFD is mandatory for children ages 12 and under while the boat is on the water, unless the children are in the confined areas of a houseboat or a pontoon with the gates closed.

Proper seating as a boat is traveling on the waterway is also essential. Once the vessel begins to move, everyone including the driver needs to be in their seats. Sitting in other areas, including the rear deck and the bow, is illegal and unsafe.

Park rangers urge anyone swimming to do so only in designated areas. Do not swim alone, and don’t rely on inner tubes, water wings or other toys to stay afloat. Parents are advised to watch their children at all times.

Another tip offered by Game and Fish concerns the consumption of alcohol on a boat or vessel. There are no open container laws for the water, and drinking is allowed for anyone ages 21 or older, but a designated driver needs to be on board of the vessel. A boating while intoxicated (BWI) citation carries the same penalty on a driver’s licenses as a driving while intoxicated (DWI), and anyone cited for BWI could lose their privileges on the highway.

Game and Fish officials also ask is that people be attentive, defensive drivers while out on the water. Operator inattention is the top cause of boating accidents, like when a driver turns to talk with a passenger while another boat is approaching with its operator doing the same thing. Paying close attention to one’s surrounding can help to avoid accidents.

Anyone with a boating emergency can call 911 or a local law enforcement agency. For additional questions, contact the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission dispatch office at 1-800-482-9262.

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