Special Feature
Wet and wild
It's fun to sit on the bank and watch personal water craft like Sea-Doos and Jet-Skis zoom around the Ohio River, trailing rooster tail. For the adventurous, it's even more fun to get on and go, go, go.
But for boat captains who are trying to push strings of barges up and down the river safely, the PWCs can be a nightmare. They cut in and out of traffic, raising alarms in the wheelhouses, where those with knowledge, experience and responsibility know they can't maneuver or stop their strings of barges quickly.
As The Courier-Journal's Sara Cunningham reported, citations for reckless operation of water scooters, and for drinking while driving them, have zoomed, too. Even more Ohio River hot rods would have got tickets if they had been caught.
By one reliable count, about 5,400 personal watercraft accidents occur annually, resulting in 2,200 injuries and more than 72 deaths. PWCs represent only 6.5 percent of this country's boating vessels, but they're involved in an ominous 55.6 percent of boat collisions and a disproportionate 32.8 percent of overall accidents.
Given these statistics, it's unimaginable that some folks put children on these high-powered vehicles and turn them loose in river traffic.
Experience and training matter. The Coast Guard reports that, across the country, the number of boating deaths, injuries and incidents involving property damage rose for the second consecutive year in 2006. Inattention, recklessness and excessive speed were most often the official causes cited, but 70 percent of the 710 boaters killed last year were on vessels captained or operated by someone with no formal training.
Letting someone who really doesn't know what they're doing -- especially children and teens -- speed around the Ohio River on a PWC is dangerous. Sure, it's great fun. These things are fast, maneuverable and seemingly simple to use. Just climb on, start the engine, twist the throttle and pretend you're a wet version of Dale Jr. Weave in and out among the other river craft at 65 miles per hour, jumping wakes, spinning doughnuts, jerking from one course to another. Shout yeehah every once in a while.
But remember, even the big and tough can have a hard time using PWCs safely. Earlier this year, 24-year-old New England Patriots defensive end Marquise Hill drowned, after he and a companion fell from a jet ski. The 300-pound Hill hit his head and apparently suffered a mild concussion. An autopsy revealed no evidence of drugs or alcohol in his system.
Continue on to read the full Article...
