The National Safe Boating Council will kick off its annual boating safety campaign with National Safe Boating Week, May 20-26.
Local Game Wardens are encouraging boater safety on area lakes with Memorial Day weekend around the corner.
“The most important thing is wearing a life jacket,” said Captain Game Warden Cliff Swofford. “I have never in all my years of working recovered a victim who was wearing a life jacket.”
U.S. Coast Guard statistics show that drowning was the reported cause of death in three-fourths of recreational boating fatalities, and that 84 percent of those who drowned were not wearing life jackets.
Swofford said boating responsibly and being aware of your surroundings will save lives.
“Always keep your head on a swivel,” said Swofford. “There’s going to be a lot of people on the water and some of them are going to be drinking alcohol.”
According to Texas Parks and Wildlife, each year hundreds of people lose their lives in boating accidents, and they may still be alive if they had been wearing a life jacket.
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