Intracoastal Waterway Boaters Have A New Safety Zone To Deal With
Palm Beach County looks to rein in the rising boating injury rate by introducing a new boating safety zone
. The new boating safety zone, located on the Intracoastal Waterway in Northern Palm Beach County, will be rolled out in two separate phases. Phase One began in early July, with Phase 2 to begin in early August.The first phase of the new boating safety zone begins 300 feet north of the Donald Ross Road Bridge and extends south of the Parker Bridge, ending where the Intracoastal Waterway meets the Lake Worth lagoon. The second phase of the zone aims to cover the remainder of the Intracoastal Waterway located in Palm Beach County.
The new boating safety zone requires that all boats abide by a slower speed with no wake. This means that boats are to operate fully off plane and stay totally settled in the water. An integral part of the of the safety zone launch is the placement of new signage explaining the new laws and the areas affected by them. Many no-wake zones are installed to prevent damage to the surrounding docks or boats, but Palm Beach County's new zone is being implemented to prevent injury.
The Palm Beach Post interviewed a local official, Captain David Schaeffer, and he had this to say regarding the new boating safety zone, "When we analyzed boating accident data for this area, it became clear that slowing down boats through this stretch of the Intracoastal Waterway will better protect the public," Captain David Schaeffer said. "It is imperative that boat operators understand what slow speed, minimum wake means and comply with the restriction."
The state of Florida has seen a rise in boating related injuries since 2007 and boating related fatalities since 2008, according to a report issued by the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC). The FWC report shows 426 boating injuries occurring in 2009, up from 386 injuries in 2008. The ten most common types of boating injuries for 2009 according the FWC's report are (in order from most to least recorded incidents of): Broken bones, Lacerations, Head injuries, Contusions, Head injuries, Internal Injuries, Back injuries, Sprains, Burns, and Spinal injuries.
While this may not seem like a huge increase, the fact that the FWC reported thousands fewer registered vessels in 2009, makes the percentage of injuries per boat even greater. 2009's injury number correlates to an injury rate of 43, compared to 2008's injury rate of 38, and 2007's injury rate of 37. The FWC defines the injury rate as the "number of injuries per 100,000 recreational registered vessels."
According to a Palm Beach personal injury attorney, while this rise in boating injuries is not a direct reflection of Palm Beach County, many of his boating cases stem from accidents along this particular stretch of waterway. Some locals believe that the installation of the new boating safety zone stems from an earlier incident where a Palm Beach County Sheriff was involved in a boating accident along the very same waterway.
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