Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SUNDAY, February 21, 1993 TAG: 9302220164
SECTION: BOAT SHOW PAGE: BS-7 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: By BILL COCHRAN OUTDOOR EDITOR
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
ACCIDENTS DECLINE AT SMITH MOUNTAIN
Smith Mountain Lake has lost the dubious honor of being the most accident-prone body of water in Virginia.There were 15 boating accidents - 10 injuries, no fatalities - reported from from the 20,000-acre lake to the Department of Game and Inland Fisheries last year. That was the lowest recorded in the past five years, and fewer than on the James River, said Jack Cox, boating safety coordinator for the deparment.
The James had 16 recorded accidents; the Chesapeake Bay and the Rapphannock River seven apiece and Broad Bay six. Smith Mountain has led the pack in the past.
Boating accidents didn't just decline at Smith Mountain, they did so significantly, Cox said. In 1991, there were 26 accidents, including one fatality and 15 injuries. The 1990 count was 27 accidents, with no fatalities and 16 injuries.
Boating was safer across the state, Cox said. There were 13 fatalities last year; well under the 20 of the previous year.
Cox believes a number of factors have contributed to the decline.
"I would say in 1992 boating activities probably were down," Cox said. He credits that to the poor economy, which cut into the time outdoorsmen spent on the water.
Other factors, Cox believes, include the tougher enforcement of boat operators under the influence of alcohol and drugs, and the public's growing awareness of boat-safety education, which is being promoted by the fish and game deparment and others organizations.
"I think there is one other thing that is very important. The boats themselves are much superior than what they were not too many years ago. You used to have boats blowing up and burning up, but you have very little of that kind of thing now. The ventilation system, the fuel system is so much superior."
The Department of Game and Inland Fisheries, along with the Roanoke Valley Power Squadron and Flotilla 81 of the Coast Guard Auxiliary, will stress boating safety and the availability of boating courses during the Southwest Virginia Boat Show. The department will have an information display on the coliseum mezzanine, while the auxiliary and power squadron will have displays in the exhibit hall. All three will be signing up boaters for safety courses.
The number of people attending boating safety education courses continues to grow, said Paul Howell, the regional boating education coordinator for the fish and game department. Howell said that more than 1,000 people attended boating education courses in the Central Mountain Region of the state last year.
"People are getting the word that the courses are worthwhile, that they are getting good information out of them, and that they don't have to spend an unreasonable amount of time to get that information," Howell said.
What's more, the completion of a safety course in most cases will bring a discount from the boater's insurance company, Howell said.
In addition to the evening classes, Howell has been getting boating-safety education into public schools, a trend he hopes to build on this year.
Howell said he is interested in hearing from anyone who would like to sponsor a course, 774-2619.
Collisions continue to be the No. 1 cause of boating accidents on Smith Mountain lake, Cox said.
"When I say collisions, I mean collisions with docks, collisions with other boats, or some people just run their boat up on an island when it seems they don't have anything else to do."
Most of the state's boating fatalities involve people falling overboard or capsizing, Cox said.
"If people would wear their personal flotation device in small boats that tend to be tippy, I believe that the fatalities would be cut in half; maybe more."
Boating-safety educators have been tieing into the growing interest in personal watercraft. The fish and game department's two-day safety course now is extended the first night to cover personal watercraft safety for those who own such craft, Howell said.
\ BOAT SAFETY\ COURSES AVAILABLE\ \ GAME DEPARTMENT: Free Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries two-night classes every month except December, at Safety Council of Southwest Virginia, 2728 Colonial Ave., call for details and registration, 344-4676.\ \ FLOTILLA 81: U.S. Coast Guard Auxiliary 13-week Boating Skills and Seamanship course, orientation March 3, 7:30 p.m. at Safety Council of Southwest Virginia, classes 7-9 p.m. begining March 15 at Ogden Center, 2932 Ogden Road, more information from Al Perdue, 343-2159.\ \ POWER SQUADRON: Nine week Roanoke Valley Power Squadron course starts March 9, 7-9 p.m., Safety Council of Southwest Virginia, more information and registration by calling Bob Chamberlin, 344-6813.