{"id":33268,"date":"2021-05-05T08:38:46","date_gmt":"2021-05-05T12:38:46","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/news.maryland.gov\/dnr\/?p=33268"},"modified":"2021-05-20T17:54:58","modified_gmt":"2021-05-20T21:54:58","slug":"may-is-boating-safety-month","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/news.maryland.gov\/dnr\/2021\/05\/05\/may-is-boating-safety-month\/","title":{"rendered":"May is Boating Safety Month"},"content":{"rendered":"<p style=\"text-align: center\"><em>Maryland&#8217;s Waterway Users Get Ready<\/em><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignright \" src=\"https:\/\/live.staticflickr.com\/3723\/9399938107_6a7c8f0726.jpg\" alt=\"Photo of father helping young daughter put on a personal flotation device\" width=\"352\" height=\"234\" \/>Maryland\u2019s boating season is on the horizon, and the Maryland Natural Resources Police is encouraging Marylanders to take proper precautions to ensure waterway safety.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">In 2020, Maryland had 155 reportable boating accidents; 64 of those accidents caused injuries and six were fatal, resulting in a total seven deaths. These numbers are down from the previous year, where Maryland saw 144 reportable boating accidents, 65 injury accidents and 16 fatal accidents resulting in 20 deaths.\u00a0<\/span><!--more--><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">\u201cSpring weather means boating season &#8212; and I am among the thousands of Marylanders eager to get out on the water,\u201d Maryland Department of Natural Resources Secretary Jeannie Haddaway-Riccio said. \u201cWith the expected heavy traffic on the waterways, it is vital that we all follow the rules, regulations, and courtesies that keep boating safe and enjoyable for everyone.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Boaters are recommended to not only follow safe boating practices, but continue following COVID-19 <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/news.maryland.gov\/dnr\/2020\/05\/06\/frequently-asked-questions-about-governor-hogans-stay-at-home-order\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">guidance for outdoor recreation.<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">\u201cPublic safety is our agency\u2019s main priority, and to ensure safety, officers will be on boating safety patrol in addition to engaging our waterway users in conversation and education, Maryland Natural Resources Police Superintendent Col. Adrian Baker said.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">The Maryland Department of Natural Resources offers <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/dnr.maryland.gov\/nrp\/Pages\/BoatingSafety\/home.aspx\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">boating safety classes<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> online and will begin offering in-person instruction in May. NRP reserve officers will also conduct routine safety checks to make sure boaters have all the required equipment they need on board to be safe in the water. Officers will take all precautions necessary to protect boaters and themselves against COVID-19 transmission.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Maryland Natural Resources Police, along with the U.S. Coast Guard and the National Safe Boating Council, offer these safety tips for boating and social distancing during the 2021 season:<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Always wear<\/span> <span style=\"font-weight: 400\">a U.S. Coast Guard-approved life jacket.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">File a float plan with a family member or friend with the details of your trip in the event of an emergency.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Carry all required boating safety equipment such as flares, a fire extinguisher, a horn or whistle, a first aid kit, throwable life jackets, line, etc.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Check navigation lights prior to your departure.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Never boat under the influence of alcohol or drugs.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Avoid distracted boating and travel at safe speeds.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Have more than one form of communication that works when wet.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Download the U.S. Coast Guard app and the <a href=\"https:\/\/dnr.maryland.gov\/pages\/dnrapp.aspx\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Maryland AccessDNR<\/a> app for easy reference information on Maryland&#8217;s waterways.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Maryland&#8217;s Waterway Users Get Ready Maryland\u2019s boating season is on the horizon, and the Maryland Natural Resources Police is encouraging Marylanders to take proper precautions to ensure waterway safety.\u00a0 In 2020, Maryland had 155 reportable boating accidents; 64 of those accidents caused injuries and six were fatal, resulting in a total seven deaths. These numbers<a href=\"https:\/\/news.maryland.gov\/dnr\/2021\/05\/05\/may-is-boating-safety-month\/\">&nbsp;&nbsp;Read the Rest&#8230;<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":146,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[957,3171,14,33],"tags":[5043,3197,3736,4035,4975,3165],"class_list":["post-33268","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-appnews","category-boating","category-nrp-news","category-the-bay","tag-adrian-baker","tag-boating","tag-boating-safety","tag-jeannie-haddaway-riccio","tag-maryland-natural-resources-police","tag-u-s-coast-guard"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/news.maryland.gov\/dnr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/33268","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/news.maryland.gov\/dnr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/news.maryland.gov\/dnr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.maryland.gov\/dnr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/146"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.maryland.gov\/dnr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=33268"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/news.maryland.gov\/dnr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/33268\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":33493,"href":"https:\/\/news.maryland.gov\/dnr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/33268\/revisions\/33493"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/news.maryland.gov\/dnr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=33268"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.maryland.gov\/dnr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=33268"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.maryland.gov\/dnr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=33268"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}