The National Safe Boating Council provides many great resources.
One important one is about using your engine cut of switch. Boats and jet skis are equipped with this safety feature to help ensure the safety of everyone on board.
It is typically a lanyard that can be clipped to your life jacket or worn around your wrist.
It is a very disconcerting feeling to see your boat speed away from you after you have fallen overboard. In addition, using the engine cut-off switch reduces the risk of a propeller strike by stopping the engine in the event the operator falls overboard or there is an emergency. It allows the operator to gain control of the vessel more quickly.
Using the engine cut off switch is also the law!
Operators of recreational vessels less than 26 feet in length are required to use an engine cut-off switch (ECOS) and associated ECOS link (ECOSL) as of April 1, 2021, as the U.S. Coast Guard implements a law passed by Congress.
Do your part to help make our waterways safer for all!
Thanks to Sherrie, we will always remember safe boating is no accident! Pre-planning before even making it to the water’s edge can help you have a great day on the water.
If you would like to learn more about vessel safety checks, please contact Steve Hults, Staff Officer for Vessel Examinations at steve.hults@uscgaux.net.
Please contact us for more information about our safe boating classes or learning more about getting involved in the Auxiliary, check out our website at www.uscgaux.net follow us on FaceBook @ Apalachee Bay Flotilla 12 or contact our Flotilla Commander Phil Hill at pnkkhill2000@yahoo.com.
The Coast Guard Auxiliary is the uniformed civilian volunteer component of the U.S. Coast Guard and supports the Coast Guard in nearly all mission areas. The Auxiliary was created by Congress in 1939. For more information, please visit www.cgaux.org.
