Issue date
Safer Boating Week is in full swing and it's a timely reminder ahead of what is expected to be a busy New Zealand summer.
Milan and Nathan, hosts of TV3 fishing show Big Angry Fish, are the faces of this year's Safer Boating Week.
Boaties are being reminded of two key ways to stay safe - wear a lifejacket and make sure you have a waterproof radio to call for help.
Research shows that up to two-thirds of recreational boating fatalities may have been avoided if people wore lifejackets.
“While only four boaties died last summer, we want the number of deaths to stay down – zero is the aim,” Safer Boating Forum chairman and Maritime New Zealand deputy director Lindsay Sturt said.
About 90 percent of recreational boating fatalities are men aged 30-60 years who go boating in small craft under 6m. On average about 23 boaties die each year.
While 86 percent of boaties take lifejackets out with them, only 38 percent take two waterproof ways of calling for help.
The Safer Boating Forum is raising awareness about the need for boaties to ensure they have a VHF radio on their vessel. Every vessel with a VHF radio acts as a station and can come to the rescue of others if they hear a distress alert on the emergency Channel 16, or on a local channel.
Recreational boaties who get into difficulty on a lake or out at sea can get help quicker if they are able to alert the crews of nearby craft.
This year the popular TV3 fishing show, Big Angry Fish, has come on board as Safer Boating Week partners. Hosts Milan and Nathan have put together three safety videos about how to prep your boat, check your gear, and know the rules – Prep, Check, Know before you go on the water, which is the theme for the week.
- Prep – service the engine, check and change the fuel, check the battery and just generally give the boat a good onceover.
- Check – make sure your lifejackets are still fit for purpose and you have enough. Service any inflatable lifejackets and ensure you have two reliable forms of communication equipment. Check the marine weather forecast.
- Know – ensure you know the 'rules of the road' on the water, and check your local bylaws to make sure you understand what the requirements are in your area.
Yachting New Zealand are involved again this year running the Volvo Sailing… Have a Go! programme, which has benefitted from funding support from Maritime New Zealand. The programme will be delivering sessions around the country, giving school children the chance to experience sailing and learn key water safety skills. About 3500 children will take part and have a go during the season.
Safer boating organisations and regional councils have been supporting Safer Boating Week by running activities, including a chance for children to be harbour master for the day, workshops and training, boat ramp and on-the-water checks, a fuel-for-safety promotion rewarding correct safety equipment, competitions, school, boat and yacht club visits, and lots more.
This year, up to 10,000 more children will be taught boating safety, and how to sail; thousands of boaties will receive face-to-face training and hundreds of old lifejackets will be replaced as Coastguard’s Old 4 New upgrades continue.
“Our aim is to support community programmes that help boaties be safer,” Sturt said. “We are helping groups and regional councils to do more to interact directly with boaties.
“It’s about learning practical skills, having some fun doing it, and being safer in boats.”
The Labour Day weekend is the traditional start of recreational boating in much of the country. The aim is to encourage boaties to take simple steps before getting back on the water: Prep your boat, Check your Gear, Know the rules.
For more information, see saferboating.org.nz or the Safer Boating NZ Facebook page
