A thought provoking article from South Florida SunSentinel as posted by Florida Wildlife Commission on August 6th.

In the wake of sad outdoors stories in the headlines the past several weeks, people who know what they’re talking about have shared their ideas to prevent future tragedies. Regarding the disappearance of two 14-year-old boys who went out Jupiter Inlet in a 19-foot boat, everyone I have talked to has a story about getting into trouble while he or she was boating. Contrary to the assertions of many uninformed commentators, the size of the boat was not the issue. South Floridians safely fish and dive offshore in boats that small and smaller. The real issue was the sea and weather conditions when the boys headed out.

When they have friends aboard, ask them to review safety items in the boat with their friends. Try to have them realize their skill levels, Schmidt wrote, adding that the boat should have life jackets that fit and the kids should know how to use them. Make sure the boat has a VHF radio that works and a cell phone (but tell them don’t let it distract you on the water). Show kids where the fire extinguisher is kept and teach them how to properly use it. Do the same with the flare kit and sound-producing devices such as air horns and, if the boat has one, the EPIRB.

Discuss what to do in an emergency, like possibly staying with the boat or using any other thing that floats. Everyone on the boat should have a basic understanding of its safety items and how to use them, Schmidt wrote. I feel everyone over 12 years old on board should be able to use the boat’s communication devices and, in an emergency, start and drive the boat. Make sure the boat they use is in good condition and help them with researching the weather conditions. Show them how you make a float plan, share it with someone on shore and stick to it.

In Sarasota last month, two friends were spearfishing when one accidentally shot the other in the head. The injured 21-year-old was taken off life support by his family. Tom Campbell, an experienced diver and spearfisherman, told me that such accidents can’t happen when a speargun is pointed in a safe direction. Campbell added that he only uses a speargun with a safety. Although you can’t rely exclusively on a gun’s safety, it does add another layer of protection. Some spearfishers don’t like safeties because it takes a moment or two to get the speargun ready to shoot. But Campbell said it doesn’t bother him if having a safety sometimes costs him a shot at a fish.

He also made an excellent point about divers who struggle to load their spearguns because it’s difficult for them to pull back the two rubber bands on their guns. Campbell suggested those divers should switch to having three bands, which would be easier to pull back, which means there would be a far less chance of the gun accidentally firing. Bad news out of Biscayne National Park for anglers about a large no-fishing zone has drawn the attention of the U.S. Congress. Last week, Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, R-Miami, whose district includes the park, introduced the Preserving Public Access to Public Waters Act (H.R. 3310). Her bill has 30 co-sponsors, 18 of them from Florida, but only two from South Florida Mario Diaz-Balart and Carlos Curbelo. The bill would ensure that federal and state agencies collaborate in the development of any new fishing access restrictions in areas where state marine waters and national park or national marine sanctuary boundaries overlap.

Over the past 15 years, I have prodded the National Park Service to increase their outreach and work together with all stakeholders in the process of developing a new General Management Plan, said Ros-Lehtinen in a statement. However, the stubborn and unsupported inclusion of a no-fishing zone in the park’s final proposal seems to be the result of a process that treats collaboration like a check box on a form, rather than as a serious dialogue between partners. That’s not right, and we should demand better from our federal government.

The diverse supporters of the bill include the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, the American Sportfishing Association, Coastal Conservation Association, Florida Keys Commercial Fisherman’s Association, National Marine Manufacturers Association and Organized Fishermen of Florida.

swaters@tribpub.com or @WatersOutdoors

BoatUS is the premiere boating advocate in the US and A SALTY SOUTHEAST CRUISERS’ NET SPONSOR!

NEWS From BoatUS

Boat Owners Association of The United States
880 S. Pickett St., Alexandria, VA 22304

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Press Contact: D. Scott Croft, 703-461-2864, SCroft@BoatUS.com

(L to R) TowBoatUS Mystic Capt. Jeff Dziedzic shakes hands with US Coast Guard Captain Ed Cubanski, Commander Coast Guard Sector Long Island Sound.

First TowBoatUS Port in the Nation Certified to Assist in US Coast Guard Search and Rescue Efforts

MYSTIC, Conn., August 6, 2015 ‘“ Like all boaters, the crew of TowBoatUS Mystic, a 24-hour, on water recreational boat towing and assistance company, will render Good Samaritan aid when asked. And now when the US Coast Guard asks for help in locating lost boaters, the privately-owned towing company will be able to lend a better ‘˜Good Sam’ hand at finding them. That’s due to TowBoatUS Mystic’s completion in May of a pilot Search-and-Rescue (SAR) training program developed by USCG Sector Long Island Sound that certifies non-US Coast Guard assets such as on water towing companies, police and fire departments or harbormasters for SAR response.

In a ceremony today at USCG Station New London to acknowledge TowBoatUS Mystic’s completion of the Coast Guard Search and Rescue Procedures and Boat Operations Course for the New London Port Security Group, Capt. Jeff Dziedzic of TowBoatUS Mystic signed a Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) with US Coast Guard Captain Ed Cubanski, Commander Coast Guard Sector Long Island Sound.

Said Capt. Dziedzic, `We’ll always render emergency aid. We’re not in the rescue business ‘” it’s just something you do as a fellow boater. This unique US Coast Guard course creates a cooperative environment and gets all of us on the same page with SAR protocols, communications and operations. The signing of the MOA represents a great achievement for my company as it sets a precedent of training and safety standards which greatly benefits the boating community and port partners. This voluntary, public-private working relationship it creates will ultimately help save lives and property during search and rescue missions.’

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About Boat Owners Association of The United States (BoatUS):

BoatUS is the nation’s largest organization of recreational boaters with over a half million members. We are the boat owners’ voice on Capitol Hill and fight for their rights. We help ensure a roadside breakdown doesn’t end a boating or fishing trip before it begins, and on the water, we bring boaters safely back to the launch ramp or dock when their boat won’t, day or night. The BoatUS Insurance Program gives boat owners the specialized coverage and superior service they need, and we help keep boaters safe and our waters clean with assistance from the non-profit BoatUS Foundation for Boating Safety and Clean Water. Visit BoatUS.com.

With the disappearance of their capsized boat and the discovery of life jackets on the coast of Georgia, hopes for their recovery are dimming.

Missing Florida teens’ boat now also missing, Coast Guard says

Click Here for the article.

Volunteers searching for missing Florida teens find life vests

Click Here for the article.

Missing Florida teens: Search along shore’s ‘˜natural collection areas’

Click Here for the article.

A new divers-down buoy was just introduced in March of this year, see /?p=147183.

FWC encourages recognition and use of the divers-down flags/buoys

Whether diving in Pensacola, scalloping in the Big Bend, lobstering in the Florida Keys or seeing the sights below the water’s surface in one of the many rivers in the Sunshine State, the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) wants to remind divers to use a divers-down flag or buoy whenever they are snorkeling or scuba diving.

The divers-down symbol is rectangular or square and red in color with a white diagonal stripe. A divers-down flag displayed on a boat must be at least 20 inches by 24 inches and displayed at a high point where it can be observed from 360 degrees around the vessel. A buoy may not be used or displayed from a vessel. A divers-down flag or buoy, displayed from the water, must be at least 12 inches by 12 inches. A flag must have a wire or other stiffener to hold it open and a buoy can be three- or four-sided.

All divers must prominently display a divers-down flag or buoy in the area in which the diving occurs.

`Proper use and understanding of what a divers-down symbol means is critical,’ said Lt. Seth Wagner with the FWC’s Boating and Waterways Section. `It is meant to alert boaters to the presence of people under the water’s surface and to give them plenty of room.’

All vessels must make reasonable effort to stay at least 100 feet away from a divers-down flag or buoy within a river, inlet or channel. In open waters, vessels must make reasonable effort to stay 300 feet away. For safety, divers should stay within those same distances of their displayed flag or buoy. A vessel that approaches closer must be fully off plane and at idle speed.

`Divers share the responsibility of boating safety with the boat operators,’ Wagner said. `Diving without the divers-down symbol displayed or using it for reasons other than to inform of the presence of divers is unlawful.’

The flag or buoy should only be displayed when divers are ready to enter the water or are in the water. When divers or snorkelers exit the water, it must be taken down.

More information on divers-down flag requirements is available online at MyFWC.com/Boating by clicking on `Boating Regulations.’

Memorize what this flag means; it saves lives!

You will think you are seeing things when this unmanned inflatable passes you. Wonder how it will deal with jet skis?

Google Maps Goes Coastal with Unmanned Boat

A new high-tech unmanned vessel, launched with the help of Google, will use innovative technologies from the boatbuilding and mapping fields to map shorelines and raise awareness of the impacts of global sea level rise.

Originally designed to be worn by backpackers, Google’s proprietary Street View Trekker camera system was provided on loan to the San Francisco Baykeeper organization, allowing them to create bay-level maps. It plans to use the imagery collected’”nearly 500 miles of coastline ranging from San Jose to Antioch, California’”on its website and for educational purposes. It will also help illustrate the threats posed by global sea level change to critical wetlands.

Electric motor developer Torqeedo said it was chosen to power the craft as clean, powerful and efficient propulsion was a high priority.

“It’s a Google Boat,” said staff scientist for the San Francisco Baykeeper organization, Ian Wren. The small, remote-controlled catamaran, a Wave Adapted Modular Vehicle (WAM-V) designed by Marine Advanced Research, features a modified hull design that flexes to adjust to the water’s surface and provides ultimate stability. Baykeeper’s WAM-V sports twin Torqeedo Cruise 4kW electric outboard motors rigged with Power 26-104 lithium batteries. The boat is able to run for hours with a nearly zero environmental footprint, thanks to onboard traditional and solar charging capabilities.

“A lot of people know about sea level rise,” said Sejal Choksi, an environmental lawyer and Baykeeper’s interim director. “We are hoping these images will really bring the reality home to the public, that they will look at pictures of places they know and say, ‘Oh my gosh, this is going to be underwater.'”

The Google Trekker, WAM-V and Torqeedo technology has also recently completed a mapping project of American Samoa.
‘¢ Google ‘¢ Ian Wren ‘¢ Sejal Choksi

The conflict between All Aboard Florida RR system and the Florida waterways continues to be a source of discord for spokespersons of both industries. Much discussion has followed the introduction of the controversial plan to increase the daily number of trains crossing primary water routes. Is this article just more political promises? It’s hard to imagine how increased RR bridge activity will not impact the flow of water traffic.

Florida officials vow rail plan won’t hurt marine industry
Posted on July 29th, 2015

Greg Stuart (left), director of the Broward Metropolitan Planning Organization, U.S. Rep. Lois Frankel, D-Fla., and Marine Industries Association of South Florida executive director Phil Purcell are shown at the meeting.
Greg Stuart (left), executive director of the Broward Metropolitan Planning Organization, U.S. Rep. Lois Frankel, D-Fla., and Marine Industries Association of South Florida executive director Phil Purcell are shown at the meeting.

U.S. Rep. Lois Frankel, D-Fla., and Broward Metropolitan Planning Organization director Greg Stuart vowed that they will not put the marine industry at risk at a meeting last week with stakeholders in All Aboard Florida.

Representatives of the Marine Industries Association of South Florida, the Coast Guard, the Broward County Commission, the Greater Fort Lauderdale Alliance, All Aboard Florida and Florida East Coast Industries also attended the meeting. It was held to get an update on the railroad test regulations being implemented at the FEC rail bridge over the New River.

Greg Stuart, executive director of the Broward Metropolitan Planning Organization, promised that his organization will not allow for the degradation of the bridge and the capacity of the marine facilities west of it.

`We recognize the need to improve it if we want to add more,’ he told attendees.

Frankel commended the Coast Guard for its efforts and vowed to stay committed to the marine industry and finding a solution. `I’m optimistic we can do it,’ she said.

The test regulations in place require that the bridge not be closed more than a combined 60 minutes during any 120-minute time period. If the test regulations are successful, the Coast Guard has indicated they will become permanent.

Coast Guard Bridge Administrator Barry Dragon said communication has been the biggest problem in the past and that the regulations, which require various means of communication, have helped the service get a handle on it.

A review of Coast Guard logs shows that since the test regulations began, the average time the bridge has been down is 1 hour and 45 minutes during a 12-hour period for 17 minutes each time.

Representatives from All Aboard Florida and Florida East Coast Industries, the parent company of All Aboard Florida, said their goal is predictability and communication. Starting in 2017, they estimate that AAF’s 32 trains will add 12 minutes to every hour that the rail bridge is closed between 6 a.m. and 9 p.m., totaling an additional three hours during the day, and that they will implement a website and/or an app that will communicate the times of the closings.

`We both want to grow and grow successfully,’ said Jose Gonzalez, senior vice president of Florida East Coast Industries.

They also discussed short- and long-term initiatives to move freight west to U.S. 27. The Florida East Coast Industries said eight of the 14 trains that run through the county, mostly at night, could eventually be diverted to CSX tracks. The MIASF pointed out that this would help car traffic, but the trains still would cross the New River at another point.

All agreed that during the next five to seven years growth in Florida, combined with freight and additional commuters on the FEC corridor, will require a second, higher bridge over the New River to elevate commuter trains, ensure predictability and protect the marine industry. Both the MPO and Frankel committed to finding funds for the bridge.