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Archive for kill cord

RYA Kill Switch lanyard wear PSA 2019

Royal Yachting Association (RYA) of the United Kingdom (UK) released a great “wear your kill switch lanyard / kill cord” Public Service Announcement (PSA) August 6, 2019. In the UK kill switch lanyards are referred to as “kill cords”. RYA’s PSA is titled A Kill Cord Could Save Your Life. While the PSA is supported […]

LifeCord – smart kill switch lanyard

Inspired by the 2013 Milligan accident in the UK, John Barker, a UK businessman did something about the problem. At least in the UK, some boaters, especially those in rougher water want to attach their kill switch lanyard (known as a kill cord in the UK). However sometimes they forget to attach the lanyard. This […]

New South Wales (NSW) proposes mandatory wearing of kill switch lanyards

New South Wales (NSW), an Australian state that includes Sydney, recently proposed an update to their Marine Safety Regulations. The update addresses many issues, including mandatory wear of kill switch lanyards on vessels of less than 4.8 meters (about 15.75 feet) equipped with a kill switch. The new proposed safety regulations are introduced by their […]

Boater Beware: A Cautionary Tale of Survival: Kill Switches: Simmons

WHNT 19 News (Huntsville Alabama) ran a great article titled, Boater Beware of a family recently ejected from a fishing boat, the boat circled, and struck both of them with the propeller. Jason Simmons, an elementary school principal, and his wife, Anna, were returning Sunday evening March 29, 2015 from a fishing trip on Wilson […]

Unprotected Propellers Can Maim and Kill: AFLOAT December 2014

AFLOAT, an Australian boating magazine published an article on the dangers of boat propellers in their December 2014 issue. The article includes news clips from two recent high profile propeller accidents involving children down under. 1. A 12 year-old New Zealand school was seriously stuck on the arm when the rowing team skiff was struck […]

Milliganesque Accident Avoided at Greenport Harbor, Long Island NY

At Greenport Harbor, Long Island New York on Monday morning 15 September 2014, the operator of a 37 foot high speed boat, referred to as a cigarette boat, with six on board lost control of the boat at full throttle. All six men were ejected. None were wearing life jackets. The boat began to circle […]

Bass Boat Operators Ejected list updated 24 Sept 2014

We updated the list of boat operators ejected from bass boats underway in open water today (24 September 2014). Most of the updates come from 2013 BARD (U.S. Coast Guard Boating Accident Report Database) data. Many of these accidents involve circling unmanned boats. Skeeter is shown as a representative bass boat. They have a long […]

Vernon Fowlkes: 1973 fatal bass boat propeller accident

The 1973 Bassmaster Classic III tournament was held on Clark Hill Reservoir, South Carolina October 24 -26, 1973. In addition to contestants, several celebrities were invited to participate in the tournament. Among the celebrities were Vernon Fowlkes, 53, a bass fishing industry supplier, co-founder of the nations first local bass organization (Tulsa Bass Club), and […]

Boat kill-switch article in Miami New Times by Trevor Bach

Following up on the Dinner Key July 4th, 2014 accident in South Florida (four fatalities and several critically injured), Trevor Bach of Miami New Times published a Riptide blog post on 31 July 2014 titled, “Dinner Key Tragedy: Advocates Say Florida Could Save Lives With One Simple Safety Law” In the article Trevor Bach notes […]

Christopher “Chris” Stanley: Indirect Boat Propeller Accident?

Christopher Stanley, 17 of North Bay, Ontario Canada, was boating southeast of town with another teenage male on Lake Nosbonsing on Sunday June 15, 2014 about 8:45am. Details of exactly what happened are still sketchy, but somehow he and his friend ended up in the water with their 16 foot boat circling them in the […]