PROVIDENCE – Environmental police officers from the Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management (DEM) Division of Law Enforcement will offer boating safety tips to the public at the Rhode Island Boat Show next month. The boat show kicks off on Friday, January 3, at the Rhode Island Convention Center and runs through Sunday, January 5.
Information on boating safety and laws, registration and renewals, boater education courses, boating safety challenge exam books, and related topics will be offered at the DEM booth throughout the show. Boater education courses are mandatory for all boaters born after January 1, 1986, who operate a boat with a motor greater than 10 horsepower, and for all operators, regardless of age, of personal watercraft.
Nationally in 2018, in accidents in which the level of operator education was known, 74% of deaths occurred on boats where the driver did not receive boating safety instruction, according to the US Coast Guard. Drowning was the reported cause of death in 77% of boating fatalities where the cause of death was known; of those who drowned, 84% were not wearing life jackets.
Forms for registering and titling new boats will be available at the DEM booth. Visit DEM online for more information on boating in Rhode Island.
Admission to the Rhode Island Boat Show is affordable: $5 per adult. There is no admission charge for children ages 12 and under, and women will be admitted to the show free on Women's Day, Sunday, January 5. For more information about boat show hours and exhibitors, click here.
For more information on DEM programs and initiatives, visit www.dem.ri.gov. Follow us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/RhodeIslandDEM or on Twitter (@RhodeIslandDEM) for timely updates.