Operation Dry Water reminds boaters that impaired boating is impaired driving

Operation Dry Water (ODW) is proud to join boating safety advocates nationwide during National Safe Boating Week, May 21 ? 27, 2022, to remind boat operators and passengers of the dangers associated with boating under the influence (BUI).

LEXINGTON, Ky., May 19, 2022 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ -- Impaired boating continues to be a leading known contributing factor in fatal recreational boating incidents.* Operation Dry Water (ODW) is proud to join boating safety advocates nationwide during National Safe Boating Week, May 21 ? 27, 2022, to remind boat operators and passengers of the dangers associated with boating under the influence (BUI). As part of the upcoming holiday weekend, boaters from across the country will head to the water while honoring, celebrating and remembering all those who lost their lives serving our country.

As part of National Safe Boating Week, the National Association of State Boating Law Administrators (NASBLA) will be representing the Operation Dry Water campaign at the kickoff event for the first-ever Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD) boating under the influence prevention campaign, "BUI = DUI, Know Before You Boat." The campaign launch will take place on May 26, 2022, with a press conference at the Lake of the Ozarks in Osage Beach, Missouri, led by MADD National President Alex Otte, who was nearly killed by a drunk boater on July 2, 2010, when she was 13 years old. MADD will host a press conference where victims of impaired boating crashes, area law enforcement, the U.S. Coast Guard, NASBLA and other guests will help reinforce the importance of protecting the boating public from impaired boating.

"National Safe Boating Week is a perfect time to remind people about the dangers of boating while intoxicated. We are really excited to have NASBLA partnering with MADD to help further the message that impaired boating is just as dangerous as impaired driving," says Lt. Kenton Turner, Chair of the National Association of State Boating Law Administrators. "The Operation Dry Water campaign encourages all boaters to stay sober, always wear a life jacket when on or around the water, and to take a boating safety course prior to departure."

Operation Dry Water, NASBLA's national boating under the influence awareness and enforcement campaign, works year-round to facilitate increased public awareness of the dangers associated with impaired boating and heightened enforcement of boating under the influence laws. Alcohol consumption while boating is not only dangerous for the operator of the vessel, but also for passengers.** Impairment can lead to slips, falls overboard, injuries and deaths that could have been prevented. When alcohol is involved, the risk of dying is the same for an impaired operator and an impaired passenger, and for men and women.**

This year will be the 14th annual Operation Dry Water heightened awareness and enforcement weekend, taking place nationwide July 2 ? 4. Operation Dry Water provides a variety of free resources for the both law enforcement and outreach partners to use in educating boaters about the dangers of boating under the influence. Local, state and federal law enforcement agencies can register to participate in Operation Dry Water at operationdrywater.org.

The National Association of State Boating Law Administrators (NASBLA) coordinates the Operation Dry Water campaign, in partnership with law enforcement agencies and outreach partners nationwide, through a grant from the Sport Fish Restoration and Boating Trust Fund administered by the U.S. Coast Guard.

Operation Dry Water (ODW) is a year-round boating under the influence awareness and enforcement campaign with the mission of reducing the number of alcohol and drug-related incidents and fatalities through increased recreational boater awareness and by fostering a stronger and more visible deterrent to alcohol use on the water.

*2020 U.S. Coast Guard Recreational Boating Statistics.
**2019 NASBLA Boating Under the Influence (BUI) Research Report.

Media Contact

Taylor Matsko, National Association of State Boating Law Administrators, 859.225.7376, [email protected]

Twitter, Facebook

SOURCE National Association of State Boating Law Administrators