The Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries said they’ve noticed a concerning trend when conducting routine checks for personal floatation devices on private boats. Lt. Tim Fox said many PFDs do not meet the required standards.
“And in most cases, these came from online vendors that might be delivered to their homes, that were not actually US Coast Guard certified or approved,” said Fox.
By law, you are required to have US Coast Guard-approved PFDs that are properly sized for any intended wearers and enough for everyone aboard the vessel.
Another issue Fox said agents are seeing is among inflatable life jackets. He said they are lacking the CO2 cartridge which inflates the jacket.
“Some life jackets are being sold without the CO2 cartridges, now they are sold at a reduced price so they think it’s a good deal, but they may not realize they need to buy a CO2 cartridge separately,” said Fox
And agents have also encountered boaters who thought the unattached cartridge was an extra and didn’t realize it needed to be attached.
Fox said the majority of boaters with PFDs concerns were completely innocent mistakes and he hopes by alerting the public more boaters will check to see if they are properly equipped before they cast off.
“Honestly in most cases that were reported to us, they realized it was innocence by the consumer and the boaters, they were trying everything right,” said Fox.
For more information click here.
Comments