Plea to parents over boat safety

Parents should act as role models for youngsters by always wearing lifejackets when on the water, it was claimed today.

With an average of six kids drowning on rivers, lakes or in the sea each year, the Government is urging adults to take the lead and ensure children are fully protected.

Pat ‘the Cope’ Gallagher, Minister for the Marine, called for those involved in water safety to target those who refuse to heed the warnings.

“I would like to stress, above all, the importance of the public taking personal responsibility for their own safety, through wearing lifejackets and taking other sensible safety precautions,” he said.

There are around 150 deaths a year in Irish waters – almost 1,700 over the last decade.

Regulations state lifejackets or personal floatation devices (PFDs) must be carried on on all pleasure craft. They must always be worn by people on boats below 7m and kids under 16.

John Leech, Irish Water Safety chief executive, said there had been a dramatic improvement in the number of people wearing lifejackets.

“We are very pleased with the amount of people wearing them, although there is a still a small minority ignoring the regulations. There has been a huge change in public opinion, behaviour and respect,” he said.

Only last weekend lifeboat crews were called into action to rescue two people in an open boat which had drifted into busy shipping lanes in Dublin Bay.

The emergency team from Dun Laoghaire got to the couple at around 6am and found they had taken to the boat without lifejackets, flares or a radio. Their only possession was a mobile phone.

A lifeboat spokesman compared the perilous trip to having a picnic on the main runway at an airport.

While the danger of drowning is well documented, the Irish Water Safety also warned over the threat of freezing to death. Hypothermia is the biggest risk to people in the water as loss of body heat occurs 26 times faster than on land.