While the percentage of car accidents is higher than boating accidents, you still need to take some precautions when your vessel is docked at a marina or while you are sailing. Every year, hundreds of people lose their lives in boating accidents. In 2017, the US Coast Guard reported that around 4,291 boating accidents took place, resulting in 650 casualties.
It’s hard to be 100% prepared for any boating accident. Hence, you should wear a life jacket at all times. Let’s look at some boating accidents that occurred due to negligence and overconfidence:
Marina on Fire
It is never a great idea to carry a portable heater and leave it unattended. Recently a fire was reported on Lake Norman. It occurred due to a portable heater. The boat owners forgot to turn off the heater as they parked the boat in the end slip.
Most boats had a wooden frame tied to a wooden dock. In terms of safety, the marina did not have a sprinkler system or a detection system that gave the fire more room to fan out.
The flames first spread across the boat’s interior, which is where the heater was located. They then touched the roof and caught the other boats.
The Fog That Caught the Passengers
One of the boating signals you need to learn first when going on week-long or month-long trips is the use of horns. When traveling in fog, the mind starts to play tricks on you. If you hear sounds coming from everywhere, don’t stop. Stopping your boat at a time like this is not the way to come out unscathed.
This is what happened with a workboat that was on its way to pick up the next shipment of fish. The captain forgot the sequence of the horns and ended up crashing with another boat that was twice its size. The crash caused the vessel to flip, and only one person survived with just a few cuts.
Such incidents send chills down your spine and make you wonder whether you are prepared to take your boat out on the water or not. Our advice is always to check twice before docking your boat to ensure you are not leaving anything unattended. Learn the rules of boating so you don’t get caught up in an accident, and always be prepared to stay ahead of a disaster.
If you are looking for quality boat docks, visit the Nor Col EZ Dock website. The company offers different types of plastic docks in Ontario as well as docking accessories, such as gangways, anchors, and railing. For more information, call (800) 654-8168.
