Regarding only PFDs (Personal Floatation Devices) in boating, this is both valuable general info and a bit of a rebuttal of popular belief. Let me unspool what I have learned firsthand...
I finally dug out the book and my class notes for the DC Boating Safety Course I took in May this year at the DC Harbor Patrol. I have an electric trolling motor on my 12ft kayak, so a course is mandatory in most states in recent years. This course was a DC-specific variation of the almost-national NASBLA curriculum. I took the DC version of the class because it is stricter than MD or VA (where I live). It's an excellent one-day class that I did on a weekend. There's no charge, but they do scan your driver's license and issue you a must-carry course confirmation card that's valid in other NASBLA states. Here's what I was told either in class or in the book I'm holding in my hand right now.
NASBLA says that 70% of boating fatalities are drownings, and 90% of those are people not wearing PFDs. Most fatalities had life jackets stowed onboard, were in daylight & good weather, light winds & calm water, in a vessel typically of open design such as a jon boat, canoe, or other boat with low sides, only 1/3 are alcohol related...and victims are typically men 26 to 50 years of age who have been boating for years and know how to swim.
Damn right, I wear it. But according to this book and the marine officer teaching the class and patrolling the water, it is not the law.
Everything north of Wilson Bridge and south of Little Falls is Federal water supervised by the DC Harbor Patrol and the National Park Service and the Coast Guard, under these rules.
In all cases, a properly fitting life jacket (not just a floatable seat cushion) is required to be in the boat and readily accessible for each person onboard.
In only some cases are life jackets/PFDs required to be WORN in DC waters:
- anywhere north of Fletcher's
- anyone under 13 years of age, while underway if above deck
- by everyone while being towed, including skiers
- by everyone if the operator is under 18, while underway
- by everyone using a Personal Water Craft (PWC), such as a jet ski (operator & passenger)
And related:
- must be min 16 yrs to use an inflatable life jacket
- an audible distress signal such as a whistle or horn, is now required on all boats under approx 65ft
- In DC waters, DC police and Coast Guard DO NOT need probable cause to stop a vessel
And after all that, the book and officers do say that "Vessel operators should ask everyone on their vessel to wear a life jacket whenever on the water". I agree completely, and may decide not to leave the dock otherwise. But it is not usually the law that they wear them, just that they are appropriate and readily available.
