Drowning fatalities are up

HARRISBURG - The Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission (PFBC) reports there have been 18 recreational boating fatalities in Pennsylvania in 2006. This is more than any time since 1982, declared Dr. Douglas Austen, the commission’s executive director. Anything that can go wrong seems to be happening. Boaters have been killed this year by capsizing or falling overboard from boats, going over dams, and colliding with other craft. The majority of the fatalities happened when a small boat capsized. The sad thing is that all the fatalities were preventable, said Dan Martin, PFBC boating safety education manager. The number one way to be safe on the water is to wear a life jacket. Eighty percent all recreational boating fatalities could be prevented if the victim had been wearing a Coast Guard approved life jacket at the time of the accident. For more information, visit the Commission Web site at www.fish.state.pa.us.