Stepping Up the Watch : Holiday Boaters Who Aren’t Shipshape Could Be Catch of the Day

ALAMITOS BAY — Anaheim resident John Elliott was on his 36-foot yacht “Love Is” on a recent sunny afternoon, cruising with some Florida guests to Catalina Island for the Labor Day weekend.

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Then alongside the yacht came a U. S. Coast Guard boat carrying Petty Officer James Antonelli, a boarding officer with the authority to inspect any boat he wants, any time he wants, to see that it’s being operated safely.

Elliott, an experienced boater, passed the inspection, receiving only warnings to buy new flares and have his 9-year-old passenger wear a life jacket while on the upper deck.

That inspection scene will be repeated hundreds of times in Orange County over the next three days as the Coast Guard and the Orange County Sheriff’s Harbor Patrol keep a vigilant eye on the thousands of partyers, fishermen and skiers who will cool off and celebrate Labor Day by hitting the water.

Harbor Patrol deputies and Coast Guard crews will also be on the lookout for people who are operating their boats while intoxicated, which since 1988 has been a federal offense punishable by up to one year in prison and a $5,000 fine.

In California, boat operators with a blood-alcohol level of .08% are considered drunk--as are the drivers of cars. Since January, the Coast Guard has stopped 44 people in California for boating while intoxicated.

They will also be intercepting boats that have too many people and not enough life jackets, and those whose engines have fuel leaks that could send the boat up in flames with a single spark.

“If it weren’t for stupidity, we would be unemployed,” said Antonelli, as he recalled accidents caused by inexperienced and alcohol-impaired boat operators.

“The message of boat safety cannot be oversold,” added Petty Officer Dennis Hall, a Coast Guard spokesman. “The most important thing you can tell someone is to wear a life jacket, or at least keep it near you. And know how to use it.”

According to the California Department of Boating and Waterways, one person was killed in Orange County boating accidents in 1992 and 1993. The 28 boating accidents that happened in the county in those two years also resulted in 10 injuries and $434,000 in property damage.

Boat operators do not need a special license to pilot a boat, nor is there any age requirement for operators.

Those factors make for dangerous conditions on the water during crowded holiday weekends, when many boat operators and passengers are busy celebrating and not watching the movements of other boats, Hall said.

“It’s just like driving a car. You have to pay attention to what the other guy’s doing because you never know what he’s going to do,” he said.

One in 10 boating accidents in California in 1992 and 1993 involved boat operators younger than 18. Personal watercraft (often called by the trade name Jet Ski) account for a third of the state’s boating accidents even though constitute only 11% of all registered sea vessels.

The percentage of motorboat fatalities involving alcohol actually has decreased in the last 10 years, declining from 59% in 1984 and 1985 to 33% in 1993.

But with no law against open containers of alcohol on boats, many operators and passengers still imbibe while on night cruises around local bays, Antonelli said. Boats also stop along restaurant-dotted shorelines, where drivers and passengers may have too much to drink. When drunk, drivers are unable to judge distances between boats, and passengers become dizzy and risk falling off the deck and drowning.

One of the most notorious boating accidents in Orange County was alcohol-related.

In 1984, five people were killed when a boat piloted by Virl Earles ran into an unlighted buoy in Anaheim Bay off Seal Beach. Earles, who survived along with three passengers, was found to be drunk at the time of the accident and convicted of involuntary manslaughter.

Sheriff’s Lt. Dick Olson said the boating public has become more aware of the danger of mixing drinking and boating since that time, but that boaters still need to pay more attention to general boating safety rules, such as having working flares, and checking fuel lines and batteries before embarking.

“We’ve got pretty heads-up boaters here in Orange County,” Olson said. “But even one ‘boating under the influence’ accident is one too many.”

Drinking and Boating

Every year, the Orange County Harbor Patrol arrests a handful of people for boating while intoxicated. Suspected drunk boat operators face the same field sobriety tests and jail penalties as drunk auto drivers. (Other figures in the chart are total incidents, not just those involving boating while intoxicated.)

1992 1993 Arrests 5 11 Accidents 16 12 Injuries 7 3 Deaths 1 0 Property damage $278,400 $155,600

Sources: Orange County Harbor Patrol, California Department of Boating and Waterways