GRAND HAVEN, Mich. — By law, boats are required to have one life jacket per person on board.
“It’s a lot harder to put on a life jacket if you fall in the water,” Petty Officer Dustin Mcclelland said.
The US Coast Guard recommends everyone wear their life jacket while on a boat.
Mcclelland said the Coast Guard is constantly working with the Ottawa County Sheriffs Marine Division and the Department of Natural Resources to keep the waters safe.
He and other officers spent Sunday going vessel to vessel trying to do just that.
“We launched our boat about two, three week ago and we come out of Muskegon, and we were
stopped by the Coast Guard and they boarded our boat, and they went through everything on the boat. They checked our life jackets,” Bruce, a local boater, said.
Depending on the boat and its features, flares and a fire extinguisher may be useful.
“It’s something that you have to get reminded of, because we actually had to get a couple flares were out of date but the other ones were up to date. and if you don’t check them every year, you don’t know that,” Bruce said.
Mccleland adds a couple more tips to take to heart. “Tell somebody where you’re going, never boat alone,” he advised.
“You never know when there’s gonna be an accident or something gonna happen. so you want to make sure you’re, everything is secure and everything’s good,” Bruce said.
Drinking and boated is, of course, illegal.
The US Coast Guard will hold ‘Boater Safety Classses’ on Tuesday and Thursday this week. They’re being held at the station in Grand Haven from 5-9 pm.
