National Safe Boating Week kicks off this weekend and runs through Memorial Day Weekend. Yet today, boating professionals and community members gathered in Helena to attempt a world record.
With no boat in sight it was a silly sight to see mobs of people in bright yellow life jackets. They all counted down with joy and after a loud 5 – 4 – 3 – 2 – 1…they plugs were pulled and the life jackets inflated in unison on the front lawn of Montana Fish Wildlife and Parks.
"Today is a world record day for inflating life jackets so people all across the United States and Canada are trying to set a world record by inflating their life jackets in preparation for National Safe Boating Week,” says Liz Lodman, Boat Education Coordinator for Fish Wildlife and Parks.
Now that we've set the “record” straight Montana’s boating community wants to bring awareness to inflatable life jackets and save your life in you plan on being out on the water.
"It’s really important boaters have a life jacket on board their boat because it’s required by law. Children under 12 need to be wearing one at all times but sometimes adults will not want to wear a life jacket because their bulky but these inflatable life jackets look like suspenders when their deflated, so if you were in a boating accident or in an emergency you could inflate them and have something that’s going to float you really well in the water," Lodman adds.
If you don't have a life jacket on board the consequences can be deadly.
"We run about 75% of people who don't have life jackets end up drowning and probably most of those people had they been wearing a life jacket would have survived,” Montana Boating Law Administrator Ron Jendro says.
Putting those numbers in perspective Lodman says "In 2009 we had 7 boat-related fatalities in Montana and the year before that we had 14 boat fatalities."
One fatality is one too many. You can't plan for a boating accident but you can plan to save lives by having a life jacket on board for you and your passengers.
How to use your Onyx A/M-24 Automatic / Manual Inflatable Life Jacket video
