Boater Safety a must in Rutherford County

May 07, 2015 at 10:07 pm by bryan


For those headed out on J. Percy Priest Lake this weekend, what looks like a perfect day for boating can quickly become hazardous. U.S. Coast Guard statistics show that drowning was the reported cause of death in three-fourths of recreational boating fatalities in 2013, and that 84 percent of those who drowned were not wearing life jackets.

Tennessee ranks No. 7 in the nation for boating accidents and No. 6 in the nation for boating fatalities, with 119 boating mishaps causing 20 deaths in the state in 2013.

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The National Safe Boating Council will kick off its Wear It! campaign promoting safe boating and life jackets with National Safe Boating Week, May 16-22.

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