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Liquor is Quicker on the Water
Alcohol, with its well-known ability to
impair performance, creates an even more hazardous situation when
added to the stress of the marine environment. This is because
the marine environment - the fluid base, motion, vibration, engine
noise, and elements of sun, wind and spray - accelerates impairment.
The operator's coordination, judgment, and reaction time are reduced
by fatigue caused by these stressors. Tests have proven that only
one-third of the amount of alcohol that makes a person legally
impaired on the road is enough to make a person equally impaired
on the water. Further, alcohol can be more treacherous for boaters
since they are less experienced and less confident on the water
than on the highway. Recreational boaters do not have the advantage
of experiencing daily operation of a boat. In fact, boaters average
only about 110 hours of boating in a whole year. And in areas
with seasonal boating, there can be months between boating outings
or fishing trips.
Effects of Alcohol Consumption
Add boating stressors to those usual factors
resulting from drinking alcohol, and a truly perilous condition
is present. Drinking alcohol produces certain physiological responses
that directly affect safety and well-being.
- Judgment and skills deteriorate, affecting
peripheral vision, balance, and ability to process information.
- Physical performance and reaction time
are reduced.
- Alcohol reduces depth perception, night
vision, focus, and the ability to distinguish colors, especially
red and green.
- Alcohol consumption can result in inner
ear disturbance, which can make it impossible for a person
suddenly immersed in water to distinguish up from down.
- Alcohol creates a sense of warmth and
may prevent a person in cold water from getting out before
hypothermia sets in.
How Quickly Alcohol Effects the Human System
| APPROXIMATE
BLOOD ALCOHOL PERCENTAGE |
| |
| Drinks |
Body
Weight in Pounds |
| |
|
100 |
120 |
140 |
160 |
180 |
200 |
220 |
240 |
Influenced |
|
| 1 |
0.04 |
0.04 |
0.03 |
0.03 |
0.02 |
0.02 |
0.04 |
0.02 |
RARELY |
| 2 |
0.09 |
0.07 |
0.06 |
0.06 |
0.05 |
0.04 |
0.04 |
0.04 |
|
| 3 |
0.13 |
0.11 |
0.09 |
0.08 |
0.07 |
0.07 |
0.06 |
0.06 |
|
| 4 |
0.18 |
0.15 |
0.13 |
0.11 |
0.1 |
0.09 |
0.08 |
0.07 |
POSSIBLY |
| 5 |
0.22 |
0.18 |
0.16 |
0.14 |
0.12 |
0.11 |
0.1 |
0.09 |
|
| 6 |
0.26 |
0.22 |
0.19 |
0.17 |
0.15 |
0.13 |
0.12 |
0.11 |
|
| 7 |
0.31 |
0.26 |
0.22 |
0.19 |
0.17 |
0.15 |
0.14 |
0.13 |
DEFINITELY |
| 8 |
0.35 |
0.29 |
0.25 |
0.22 |
0.2 |
0.18 |
0.16 |
0.15 |
|
| 9 |
0.4 |
0.33 |
0.28 |
0.25 |
0.22 |
0.2 |
0.18 |
0.17 |
|
| 10 |
0.44 |
0.37 |
0.31 |
0.28 |
0.24 |
0.22 |
0.2 |
0.18 |
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Boating Under the Influence (BUI) is Illegal
Nationwide
It is unlawful in every State to operate
a boat while under the influence of alcohol or drugs. In addition
to State BUI laws, there is also a Federal law, enforced by the
Coast Guard, prohibiting BUI. This law applies to all boats, including
foreign vessels, in U.S. waters and U.S. vessels on the high seas.
Penalties for BUI are Severe
The Coast Guard and every State have stringent
penalties for violation of BUI laws, including the possibility
of not only a large fine, suspension or revocation of operator
privileges, but perhaps a jail term . The Coast Guard and the
States, in a mutual effort to remove impaired boat operators from
the water, cooperate fully. In sole State waters, States have
authority to enforce their own BWI statutes. Within State waters
that are also subject to the jurisdiction of the U.S., there is
concurrent jurisdiction. If, in these waters, a boater is apprehended
under Federal law, the Coast Guard will, unless precluded by State
law, request that State enforcement officers assume custody of
an intoxicated boater.
What Will Happen to the Impaired Operator?
When the Coast Guard determines that an
operator is impaired, the voyage will be terminated. The vessel
will be brought to mooring either by Coast Guard tow, a member
of the Coast Guard crew, or a competent, non-toxicated, person
on board of the recreational vessel. Depending on the circumstances,
the operator may then be arrested, detained until sober, or turned
over to State or local authorities.
Threefold Approach
Because operating a boat under the influence
is so dangerous, the Coast Guard is using a threefold approach
to reducing alcohol related accidents:
- Improved law enforcement in cooperation
with the States.
- An improved accident reporting system
to identify alcohol-related accidents.
- Widespread education and public awareness
of the dangers of alcohol. Every boater, whether an operator
or passenger, should cooperate in spreading this word.
Boating Safety Education
Throughout the country each year, over
2,000 safe boating courses are offered by groups such as the U.S.
Coast Guard Auxiliary, the U.S. Power Squadrons, the American
Red Cross, and individual States. Courses cover many aspects of
boating safety - from boat handling to reading the weather. All
courses include knowledge and warning about alcohol and boating.
For more information on finding a course near you that will fit
your schedule - call the toll-free U.S. Coast Guard Info line
at 1-800-368-5647 or view Boating
Safety Courses on our Web site.
Suggested Ways to Avoid the Hazards of
Alcohol
Boating doesn't need any stimulus to make
it fun. Fishing doesn't need any liquid bait to improve the catch.
Consider these alternatives to alcohol and boating.
- Tale along a variety of sodas, a jug
of water, ice tea, or lemonade, or take along non-alcoholic
beer.
- Take along plenty of food.
- Wear clothes that will keep you cool.
- Plan to limit your trip to the number
of hours you can spend on the water without becoming tired.
- Enjoy your outing more by having the
party ashore after you dock - in the picnic area, in the Yacht
Club, in your backyard - where you'll have time between the
fun and getting back into a boat or your car.
- If you dock somewhere for lunch or dinner
and drink alcohol, wait a reasonable time before heading back
home.
- If necessary, be sure to have a sober
designated driver as the boat operator. Or better yet, in
case of emergency, have two designated non-drinking operators.
- No alcohol aboard is the safe way to
go - remember, intoxicated passengers can fall overboard,
too.
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