Boating

Florida leads the nation in boating accidents and the Florida Keys leads the state. Life jackets worn at all times would lessen possible tragedy

U.S. Coast Guard crews from Tampa and Fort Myers were involved in the rescue of 15 people in two separate boating incidents on Saturday and Sunday in Southwest Florida waters.Seven adults and a child were rescued Saturday after their 28-foot boat boat capsized 36 miles off Boca Grande. Coast Guard Sector St. Petersburg crews came to the rescue of these boaters.On Sunday, seven boaters were rescued by a Fort Myers Beach U.S. Coast Guard crew after their boat took on water during inclement weather.No injuries were reported in either case.

There are boating safety tips that you need to know before you go onto the water.

Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission’s new report on the 2022 boating season. The main takeaway: Fewer accidents at sea, but more deaths.

The Federal Emergency Management Agency said it will cover vessels damaged by Hurricane Ian if they were liveaboards and the proper proof can be shown.

The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission will add to its boater safety course questions about the rules designed to protect manatees, sea turtles and other marine life at risk of injury from watercraft.

Hurricane Ian sunk, stranded, or swamped so many vessels that the deadline to have them up and out of the waterways, mangroves, or backyards has been extended.If you are lucky enough to have a boat, car, motorcycle, all-terrain and vehicle and a trailer to haul it all, but hapless enough to have the 150-mph winds blow it all over the place you just got lucky again. Sort of.Hurricane Ian displaced more than 4,000 vessels, vehicles, and trailers – anything with a registration counts - and more than 500 of them are judged abandoned. The number of vessels thrown about by Ian is expected to grow as more are discovered, some totaled and removed by their owners’ insurance companies, and some not.Rob Beaton, a major with the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission in charge of boating and waterways, said owners are still encouraged to hire a salvage company themselves to recover their vessel, but if they cannot afford it, and hand over the title, his agency will coordinate the removal and destruction of the vessel, and owners will not be charged.

Updates Post-Ian Recovery Resources, an ongoing feature post-Ian

Hurricane Ian washed thousands of boats onto land all along the coast of Southwest Florida, and sank many as well. We talk with someone from the Boat Owners Association of The United States to find out who is responsible for removing or salvaging them.And when a disaster like Hurricane Ian unfolds The American Red Cross is there before, during, and after the storm. The non-profit humanitarian organization currently has more than 1,800 disaster workers and volunteers on the ground across the affected communities.

The immediate search and rescue portion of the hurricane response may be over, but the recovery and reconstitution efforts by federal, state and local partners are ongoing. U.S. Coast Guard and Florida Fish and Wildlife Officials ask recreational boaters to stay off the water this weekend.