At the AM virtual briefing this morning at the Coast Guard Sector where I serve in several capacities, the duty Command Center Search Mission Coordinator (SMC) briefed the Command Cadre on the many mishap and Search and Rescue (SAR) cases we had over the weekend. Two cases choked me up.

An 85 yo grandpa and his 8 yo son were fishing on one of the Great Lakes in my AOR. The boat sank (cause as yet undetermined). The youngster, wearing his life jacket was able to swim to shore and alert rescue forces. The grandfather's body, no lifejacket, was recovered shortly thereafter.

2nd case: A dog wearing a life jacket was found wandering the beach of the same Great Lake. Search and rescue assets were alerted and ultimately recovered the bodies of a male and female adult-no life jackets.

In my area of responsibility (AOR) no laws require adults to wear life jackets during the summer months, although both federal and state laws require children under 12(state) or under 13 (federal) to wear life jackets while on board a vessel not moored up. There are some exceptions depending on the size of the vessel and where the youngster is on the boat, but for the most part, for the kids, life jacket wear is mandatory while aboard a vessel whether or not it is underway.

When I am patrolling my AOR, much more frequently than not, I see the adults on boats without life jackets while their kids and dogs are wearing them. I do not understand why people recreating on the water with their kids (or grandkids) create a situation where if something goes terribly wrong on the water, their children are likely to go home without a parent, grandparent, or as orphans. I cannot imagine how that 8 year old is going to cope with the loss of his grandfather.

Thanks for letting me get that off my chest. Oh yeah, and put on your freaken' life jacket... PLEASE.


Regards,
Doug