LIHU‘E — A Safe Boating Week exhibit by the United States Coast Guard, Saturday, at Kukui Grove Center will kick off the Kaua‘i Safe Boating Week, May 22-28. Lt. Gordon Hood, Commanding Officer of the USCGC Kittiwake (WC 87316), and
LIHU‘E — A Safe Boating Week exhibit by the United States Coast Guard, Saturday, at Kukui Grove Center will kick off the Kaua‘i Safe Boating Week, May 22-28.
Lt. Gordon Hood, Commanding Officer of the USCGC Kittiwake (WC 87316), and Jim Jung of the USCG Auxiliary accepted a mayoral proclamation announcing the annual observance. Jung noted that USCG Auxiliary members will be available from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the mall to distribute boat safety literature as well as answer questions from concerned boaters.
Jung said in addition to the Kukui Grove Center appearances, USCG Auxiliary members will be at the Nawiliwili Small Boat Harbor launching ramp next to the Coast Guard station, Sunday, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. to conduct free vessel safety checks and distribute safe boating literature.
On May 30, free safe boating classes will be held at the Lihu‘e Neighborhood Center, starting at 9 a.m., centering on Rules of the Road, equipment requirements, knot tying, and more.
Jung, in a release, said recreational boating is fun and enjoyable, but to the unprepared, it can be a risky sport.
Not knowing or obeying the rules, or drinking or taking drugs while operating a boat, or choosing not to wear a life jacket are clearly not smart things to do.
If people are aware of the risk, they are likely to take precautionary measures to protect themselves, their family and friends. Jung strongly encourages all boaters to wear a life jacket and practice safe boating habits, not only during Safe Boating Week, but always.
A life jacket can be the determining factor between life and death in many boating accidents, the release states. On the average, 700 people die in boating related accidents with eight out of 10 victims not wearing a life jacket.
Thousands of people would be alive today had they simply wore a life jacket when they went out on the water.
The USCG Auxiliary provides information on safe boating practices and on the equipment boaters are required to have on their vessels. Throughout the entire year, USCG Auxiliary members conduct vessel safety inspections, distribute literature to promote safe boating, educates boat operators with safe boating courses and train for search and rescue missions to keep Kaua‘i’s ocean waters safe.
For more information, call USCG Auxiliary Commander Jung at 822-0448.
• Dennis Fujimoto, staff writer and photographer, can be reached at 245-3681 (ext. 253) or dfujimoto@kauaipubco.com.