Tragic Death on Long Island Waters - Alcohol and Boating Do No Mix!

[rpasquarello]

Two kids are now fatherless and a wife now widowed due to a speed-boater's recklessness.

The attached link is to a video from one of the news crews that came on my boat yesterday afternoon to report on the tragedy.


http://abclocal.go.com/wabc/story?section=news/local/long_island&id=8711903

I have seen too many injuries and deaths due to drinking and driving and what makes it worse is that the BWI penalties in NY are much weaker than those for DWI.

My prayers to the victims of this tragedy.

 

[Summer Fun II]

Prayers sent.


Drunk at 5:00AM !! :wow: . :wow: . I doubt the victim had a PFD on because it took so long to find him. :smt021

 

[Jackie J V]

Terrible. I wouldn't be too quick to start blaming the victim for not wearing a life jacket. Reasonably few would while in the cockpit of a sedan bridge.

Paul

 

[Gofirstclass]

Amen to your comment about drinking and boating. It's sad that some people think they are 10' tall and bulletproof and that it will never happen to them. They never learn.

 

[Crushin It]

Terrible news for all. So sad..

 

[Bt Doctur]

Have the trial right at the dock, install the cement shoes , and toss them in. option 2 is to grind them up for some chum.

 

[Creekwood]

I cannot believe that the DWI laws anywhere would be less strict for boating than for driving a car. Does anyone out there think that boat driving requires LESS skill and attention than driving a car? Unbelievable. For anyone who wants to argue that they should be less strict, then give me your marina address, I'll come down, down a six pack in the sun (keeping me just under the limit), and then I'll put your boat in your slip for you.

I hope this kid becomes a poster child for the consequences of killing someone while driving drunk so that the boneheads out there that are doing it (I hope none on this forum, but........) get the message. He didn't die, which is good, because if he did, he or his family might get some sympathy from some people. I hope he is criminally charged and also gets his A$$ sued off in a civil action.

 

[hillsideshortleg]

Are we talking about putting a boat in a slip, or sitting out on the lake having a couple of drinks without having the government boarding your boat and doing their test? I have no idea what a .08 blood alcohol level is. I dont drink and drive a car, but I dont want our government boarding my boat just to look and see if I am doing anything wrong when there is no apparent reason. DONT GET ME WRONG! I can see nailing some dumb A&& on a boat that is operating it in a unsafe manner. In Washington they are playing radio ads about "emphasis patrols" on the water. This will mean doing what they want just because they can.

 

[blaster]

The sad truth is this guy will probably get a slap on the wrist and never look back or think about the damage he has caused the victims family. He probably is just another entitled brat who thinks of nothing beyond himself while expecting the world to revolve around him.

I say tape headphones on his head and make him listen to sesame street over and over in the hot summer sun until he dies of dehydration and mental collapse.

 

[src]

I would suspect that if he gets off light from the law, a civil suit will take care of screwing up the rest of his life.

 

[AMFM3]

"Water on the Water...Beer on the Pier". A saying we've used in radio reports on my stations for a long time. Staid advice to live by.

Mark

 

[Henry Boyd]

Are we talking about putting a boat in a slip, or sitting out on the lake having a couple of drinks without having the government boarding your boat and doing their test? I have no idea what a .08 blood alcohol level is. I dont drink and drive a car, but I dont want our government boarding my boat just to look and see if I am doing anything wrong when there is no apparent reason. DONT GET ME WRONG! I can see nailing some dumb A&& on a boat that is operating it in a unsafe manner. In Washington they are playing radio ads about "emphasis patrols" on the water. This will mean doing what they want just because they can.

Don't want to burst your bubble, but the Coast Guard has had the right to board vessels at will in US waters since its creation (I seem to recall somewhere around 1790).

Henry

 

[hillsideshortleg]

No bubble. I am aware of that, but thanks for letting others know! You see I believe special intrest groups are started for good reasons. Untill they accomplish their goal. Then they run out of things to do so they spend more time intruding in others personal business. I would like to go on but will stop myself.

 

[Dsybok]

Are we talking about putting a boat in a slip, or sitting out on the lake having a couple of drinks without having the government boarding your boat and doing their test? I have no idea what a .08 blood alcohol level is. I dont drink and drive a car, but I dont want our government boarding my boat just to look and see if I am doing anything wrong when there is no apparent reason. DONT GET ME WRONG! I can see nailing some dumb A&& on a boat that is operating it in a unsafe manner. In Washington they are playing radio ads about "emphasis patrols" on the water. This will mean doing what they want just because they can.

Even if you are anchored out, you must have the ability to get underway at any time, which means you must have a designated driver for your boat at all times unless you are sitting on blocks. It is an irresponsible captain that would start drinking even on the hook to the point where you were not able to handle your craft.

The .08 limit has been around for a decade and it was .10 for more than a decade before that. Have you been under a rock for the last 20 or 30 years? Most places even give you a no brainer chart that shows by weight how many drinks you can have to stay under the limit, it comes with your car registration renewal. Saying you have no idea what a .08 limit is, well thats a little lazy in my opinion.

At the end of the day it is foolish to think you can sit out somewhere and have a "few drinks" and that its no big deal. That is a dangerous attitude, and I hope the CG does board you and teach you a lesson sometime. I never have more than 1 beer when I am in command of my vessel regardless of circumstances, the fun of being on the water is all the intoxication I need, and keeping my crew safe is more important.

 

[Billfletcher]

1 beer while on the hook, until i hit the dock. Then i catch up to everyone else for the time lost :smt001 - if i am sleeping aboard and not driving of course. Capt Hazelwood on the Exxon Valdez can speak from experience on this subject.

 

[comsnark]

Even if you are anchored out, you must have the ability to get underway at any time, which means you must have a designated driver for your boat at all times unless you are sitting on blocks.

Does the requirement to be able to get underway include times when the crew and captain take the dingy to shore?

 

[dwna1a]

Simple.... Don't drink and boat. Remember, most of the folks that go out and get hammered on the boat are the ones who cause big problems for the rest of us. We dodge them in the channel or find them anchored up under a bridge with no lights. The local PD now has three boats and they are out there, manned, and paid for by our tax dollars, just to seek out these unsafe and irrespossable boaters. For me, it takes my sight, hearing, and my brain to get from point A to point B. Beer and bourbon kinda make all of those a little foggy. Drink at the dock! If this boater gets off with a slap...send him to the York River, when he rams of of those old crab boaters you won't find him in court, you'll find him as bait in about 40 different crab pots. My thoughts and prayers go out to the victims and the captain of the boat

 

[Creekwood]

Does the requirement to be able to get underway include times when the crew and captain take the dingy to shore?

Operating a dinghy under power is operating a vessel. Same rule applies I would expect (hope??)

 

[WahooUSMA]

Are we talking about putting a boat in a slip, or sitting out on the lake having a couple of drinks without having the government boarding your boat and doing their test? I have no idea what a .08 blood alcohol level is. I dont drink and drive a car, but I dont want our government boarding my boat just to look and see if I am doing anything wrong when there is no apparent reason. DONT GET ME WRONG! I can see nailing some dumb A&& on a boat that is operating it in a unsafe manner. In Washington they are playing radio ads about "emphasis patrols" on the water. This will mean doing what they want just because they can.

Really, are you serious? PD/Coast Guard/Park Rangers can board my boat anytime. What in the heck would you deem law enforcement use as PC to board your boat? After you crash and seriously injure or kill someone? Boating is a privilege, not a right! Its just like having a drivers license, violate the law...your done! So are you pissy at vehicle DUI check points? I think not...bet your happy when they hall in some drunk @ss knucklehead they catch at a check point? Its the same on the water. The problem I see is that we cannot have DUI check points on the water (can you imagine having everyone wait in line?). Therefore, the only feasible way to verify your not intoxicated is to do random safety stops. BFD - get over it.

As you can see or read, this topic really hits center mass with me. I spent over 20 + years as a cop with LAPD, and I have seen my fair share of fatalities as a result of intoxication....No excuse for driving OR boating under the influence!

 

[hillsideshortleg]

Comming from a cop, I can understand your response. I have no trust in cops!! why would I want one on my boat? They lie to protect themselves and all stick together to protect themselves. I have witnessed it first have and when I filed a complaint his boss lied for him. Sooooo why in the heck would I want a lying pack of backpatters on my boat. Now remember this is comming from a town where a drunk off duty cop shot and guy in the back of the head as he was running from him and got away with it. This is also the town where a innocent off duty janitor was beaten and hog tied till he died. By the way I figured my blood alcohol level and I have never been close to legally drunk. I probably havent been legally drunk in over 30 years.