FWC releases statistics of waterway patrols over Labor Day weekend
When Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) officers are on water patrol, their main objective is to keep boaters safe. Labor Day weekend marks the unofficial end of summer and in Florida, visitors and residents take the long holiday weekend as an opportunity to enjoy water activites before the change of seasons.
This year, the popular boating weekend fell just days after Hurricane Idalia made landfall in Florida on Wednesday, August 30, 2023. While many FWC officers were deployed to assist residents in areas hardest hit by Hurricane Idalia, other officers were out in full force looking out for reckless or impaired vessel operators and other dangerous boating violations.
Between Sept. 2 and 4, 2023, FWC officers removed nearly 20 unsafe, impaired vessel operators from Florida's waterways for boating under the influence, issued more that 380 citations, and provided education and warnings to more than 2,800 boaters due to safety violations. Fortunately, there were no boating accident fatalities reported over the holiday weekend.
“These past two weeks are a testament to the versatility and dedication of our officers,” said Col. Brian Smith, Director of the FWC's Law Enforcement Division. “At the same time, we had officers conducting welfare checks in high-water vehicles and shallow draft vessels in communities in the Big Bend, other officers were filling their shoes back home, keeping boaters enjoying the holiday weekend safe. I have no doubt that their actions helped prevent tragic accidents from occurring over the holiday weekend,”
The FWC reminds all boaters to enjoy time with friends and family, but do so safely and don’t forget to designate a sober operator before departing from the dock.
For more information about boating safety, visit MyFWC.com/Boating and http://MyFWC.com/Boating/Safety-Education.
To report dangerous boating activity, the public can submit anonymous tips by texting 847411 (Tip411) with the keyword “FWC” followed by the location and any information about the violation, or calling 888-404-FWCC (3922).
There's an easy-to-use downloadable iPhone or Android app: “FWC Wildlife Alert.” For Android devices, download here: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.citizenobserver.wildlifealert. For Apple devices, downloca here: https://apps.apple.com/al/app/fwc-wildlife-alert/id6443472929.