Fishing Opener- WATER SAFETY REMINDER

With the opening of fishing quickly approaching, Beltrami County Sheriff’s Office would like to remind fishermen, boaters and water recreation enthusiasts to pay attention and use common sense when boating and using the waterways in northern Minnesota.

 Most deaths among boaters are caused by falls overboard and capsizing. In a small boat, resist the urge to stand up. If you must move around, keep your weight low and close to the center of the craft.

 Wear your personal flotation device (PFD or life jacket). Approved PFDs are now stylish, comfortable and practical. Models are available for all ages and for various boating activities. Wearing your PFD is the best “life insurance” policy afloat.

 Collisions with a second boat or another object don’t just happen. They are usually the result of inattention, fatigue, and a lack of knowledge about local water conditions.

 Keep an eye on the weather, especially on larger lakes such as Red Lake, Leech and Winnibigoshish. Obtain up-to-date weather information from a marine band radio, AM radio, or by simply watching the sky. (Summer storms in Minnesota usually come from the west and particularly from the southwest.)

 If you are caught in rough weather, put on your PFD, keep low in your boat and head for the closest shore. In heavy waves, your boat handles best when you head into the waves at an angle.

 If someone is in trouble in the water, use elementary rescue methods first, such as throwing something that floats to the victim. Only as a last resort should you ever enter the water to save someone, even then, take a buoyant object like a PFD with you.

 Before you leave on a boating or fishing trip, let someone know where you are going and when you will return. If you run into trouble, this will assist authorities in looking for you.

 Hypothermia (below normal body temperature) is an insidious killer that is involved in perhaps as many as one-half of Minnesota’s boating deaths each year. Immersion in cold water (less than 70˚F) causes the body to lose heat faster than it can produce it, decreasing the body’s inner (core) temperature. This decrease can cause symptoms ranging from continual shivering, poor coordination, and numb hands and feet in moderate cases to hallucinations and eventual death in most extreme situations. Cold water robs body heat 25 times faster than air of the same temperature, so if you capsize or fall out of your boat, immediately attempt to reboard your craft. Most small boats if overturned, can be righted and bailed out. In fact, modern small craft.

 Wearing your PFD will help protect you from hypothermia in several ways. It decreases the amount of movement necessary to remain afloat, and it also helps to insulate you from heat loss. A PFD will also keep you afloat if you become unconscious due to hypothermia.

 Booze is bad news! Alcohol and drugs are involved in about one third of all boating fatalities. In fact, a Coast Guard study from a few years back showed that a boater who was legally intoxicated was 10 times more likely to become involved in a fatal accident than one who was sober. Alcohol also adversely affects vital body functions such as balance, coordination, vision and judgment. Combining the effects of cold water and alcohol can speed the onset of hypothermia (a dangerous cooling of the body’s inner temperature), causing even good swimmers to drown in minutes - often within a few yards of safety.

 Beltrami County Sheriff’s Office has deputies patrol lakes and waterways to help provide a safe environment for all fishermen, boaters and recreational users. If you need help, please call the sheriff’s office at 218-333-9111. Please remember to abide by the safety and BWI laws.

Additional information about boating safety can be found at the following link: http://www.dnr.state.mn.us/safety/boatwater/index.html

Remember that a safe and enjoyable experience on the water is up to you.

Sheriff Phil Hodapp