Boating & Fishing Safety

Changes to Boating Safety Regulations in Time for 2023 Boating Season

Wearing a life jacket while paddling in Rhode Island will no longer be optional; it will be required, according to new boating safety regulations announced by the Department of Environmental Management (DEM). The “mandatory personal flotation device (PDF) wear for all paddle craft” rule is one of five new safety regs that will go into effect on April 2, 2023. The new rules have been written to save lives. Violations could result in the imposition of a $100 ticket. The PFD reg states that all operators and passengers of canoes, kayaks, sailboards, kiteboards, paddleboards, and any other paddle craft must always wear a United States Coast Guard (USCG)-approved PFD while underway regardless of age.

Learn more

There were three fatal kayaking accidents in Rhode Island in 2022: a 56-year-old East Providence man who died in Newport on July 13, a 40-year-old Cranston man who died at Lincoln Woods State Park on July 23, and a 36-year-old Narragansett man who died in Narragansett on Oct. 1. None of the victims was found wearing a life jacket. Between 2018 and 2021, four out of the 10 boating-related drowning deaths in the state were paddle craft users not wearing life jackets, according to National Association of State Boating Law Administrators data.

“Our regulatory changes are a direct result of the totally preventable paddle craft tragedies that Rhode Island has experienced in the past five years,” said Captain Michael Schipritt, Division of Law Enforcement (DLE) Boating Safety Coordinator. “There is no time to put a life jacket on before a paddling accident. It’s like trying to buckle your seatbelt before a car crash.”

According to a United States Coast Guard (USCG) report, eight out of 10 boaters who drowned were using vessels less than 21 feet in length. Smaller vessels such as canoes and kayaks are less stable than larger vessels and in strong currents paddlers using them can put themselves in danger. Drowning is the reported cause of death in 75% of all boating fatalities. Of those who drowned, 86% were not wearing life jackets.

Most boating fatalities are the result of capsizing or falls overboard, not collisions between boats running at high speed. Experts recommend that people who end up in the water stay with the boat, even if they can’t get back in. They are more likely to be seen by potential rescuers if they are next to a boat. A person should only swim for shore if wearing a life jacket, the likelihood of rescue is low, or they are close to shore and aren't able to climb back into or on top of the boat.

"The key is the life jacket," Schipritt said. "A person who suffers swimming failure or loss of consciousness will stay afloat wearing a life jacket but will drown without one."

Another new regulation that could prevent injuries and save lives is a restriction prohibiting anyone from riding on the bow of a powerboat unless it’s equipped with bow seats designed to accommodate passengers or from hanging their feet and legs over the top of the gunwale anywhere on the boat while underway. “Every summer, DLE marine patrols respond to at least one accident involving too many passengers, often children, on the bow of a boat upsetting the balance on the boat and the boat taking on water, or a child dangling their legs over the top of the bow and getting pulled into the water if the boat goes through a high boat wake,” said Schipritt. “These incidents are preventable.”

Another new rule requires boaters to slow down and move over when emergency vessels — such as Coast Guard, firefighting, harbormaster, and DEM boats – are within 300 feet of the boater and have their emergency lights activated. A fourth regulation requires all fire extinguishers on boats to abide by their age expiration date. Typically, the date of manufacture is printed on the bottom of the fire extinguisher. The last new reg relates to engine cut-off switch compliance. Specifically, the captain of a recreational boat that’s 26 feet long or less that’s equipped with an engine cut-off switch must use the switch if the boat is “on plane or above displacement speed.” Displacement speed is the speed at which the wavelength of a vessel’s bow wave is equal to the waterline length of a vessel. As boat speed increases, the wavelength of the bow wave also increases.

For information on Rhode Island boating laws, click here.

WEAR IT!

Anyone going out in a boat, canoe, kayak, or vessel of any kind should wear a life jacket to help ensure they enjoy a safe experience. According to a United States Coast Guard (USCG) report, eight out of 10 boaters who drowned were using vessels less than 21 feet in length. Smaller vessels such as canoes and kayaks are less stable than larger vessels and in strong currents paddlers using them can put themselves in danger. Drowning is the reported cause of death in 75% of all boating fatalities. Of those who drowned, 86% were not wearing life jackets.

"There is no time to put a life jacket on before a boating accident. It would be like trying to buckle your seat belt before a car crash. Smart boaters wear a life jacket from the time they board a boat until they return to shore. - Lieutenant Michael Schipritt, Rhode Island DEM Division of Law Enforcement's boating safety coordinator.

Today's life jackets are comfortable, stylish, and easy to wear. Some aren't even old-fashioned, bulky orange jackets anymore, having been replaced by innovative options such as inflatable life jackets that allow mobility and flexibility for activities like boating and fishing

Most boating fatalities are the result of capsizing or falls overboard, not collisions between boats running at high speed. Experts recommend that people who end up in the water stay with the boat, even if they can't get back in. They are more likely to be seen by potential rescuers if they are next to a boat. A person should only swim for shore if wearing a life jacket, the likelihood of rescue is low, or they are close to shore and aren't able to climb back into or on top of the boat.
Where the level of instruction was known, 77% of deaths occurred where the operator did not receive any boating safety instruction. (USCG 2020 statistics)
Only 12% percent of deaths occurred on vessels where the operator was known to have received a nationally-approved boating safety education certificate.(USCG 2020 statistics)
Alcohol use is the leading contributing factor in all fatal boating accidents.(USCG 2020 statistics)

Boating safety education has helped reduce boating accidents in Rhode Island, and it is the law. In Rhode Island, successful completion of a boating safety course is required for all boaters born after January 1, 1986, who operate a boat with a motor greater than 10 horsepower; and regardless of age for all operators of personal watercraft (jet ski). For information on classroom courses or to access DEM's free online course, visit www.dem.ri.gov/safeboating.

FISHING IN COLD WATERS

Even on a warm day, water temperatures can linger in the low to mid-50s in cooler months. According to a U.S. Coast Guard report, a boating accident is five times more likely to be fatal if the water is colder than 60 degrees. Using small, unstable vessels like canoes and kayaks in water that's deceivingly cold puts anglers in a very dangerous situation.

"Cold water can kill in ways that you might not expect. Nearly everyone knows that immersion in cold water can cause hypothermia – the abnormal lowering of the body's core temperature. The effects of a cold-water immersion event, however, can contribute to death well before any drop of body core temperature." - Lieutenant Michael Schipritt, Rhode Island DEM Division of Law Enforcement's boating safety coordinator.

According to the U.S. Coast Guard Safety Division, victims who experience an unexpected fall overboard suffer initial cold-water shock in the first minute, which involuntarily causes them to take a series of big breaths, called hyperventilation. If their head is underwater, they can inhale more than a quart of water and drown immediately. People lucky enough to keep their head above water will continue hyperventilating as their blood pressure jumps. If they can't control their breathing within 60 seconds, they'll suffer numbness, muscle weakness or even fainting, which leads to drowning. A person with heart disease may experience sudden death due to cardiac arrest.

A victim who survives the first minute of cold shock and hyperventilation will progress to the second stage, called "cold incapacitation" or swimming failure. Within about 10 minutes, rapid cooling of the extremities causes muscle stiffening so a person will no longer be able to perform the simplest tasks, such as swimming, holding onto a floating object, or putting on a life jacket. Even yelling for help can be difficult.

Hypothermia is the third stage. There is a common misconception that it sets in almost immediately after a person lands in cold water. However, a victim won't start to become hypothermic for 30 minutes. Severe hypothermia can take an hour or more to set in, depending on the water temperature, body mass, clothing, the amount of struggling, and other factors. A body core temperature of 95 degrees is considered hypothermic, loss of consciousness occurs at about 86 degrees, and death is imminent when the core temperature drops below 82. Unless a person is wearing a life jacket, drowning will occur long before severe hypothermia sets in.

HIGH SURF ALERTS

Rhode Island often experiences needless tragedy during storms when wave-watchers or anglers who have climbed onto rocks near the shore get hit by waves, are quickly swept out to deep water, and drown. Along with some anglers, "storm watchers" put themselves in danger by standing too close to the surf on rocks along the shoreline in fishing areas, breakwalls, and breachways. Stay safe by remaining far away from areas where waves might splash over. Waves possess enormous force and can easily sweep a person into the water from what seems to be a safe viewing area. Get the latest surf forecast here.