Photo By Petty Officer 1st Class Stephanie Butler | Quarter Master Chief Timothy Petersen (left) drives New York Naval Militia Patrol Boat...... read more read more
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WATERFORD, N.Y. -- From May to October 2025, four New York Naval Militia boats patrolled New York’s canals to ensure boater safety during the boating season.
“We are always looking for hazards to navigation, said Master Chief Glen Niemitalo, operations officer, NY Naval Militia’s Military Emergency Boat Service.
“Logs, that's one of the biggest issues in the various rivers that we control that are part of the canals, especially this season in the spring, there's a lot of debris,” he added.
“If any boater needs assistance, guidance, we provide that as well,” Niemitalo said.
The 524-mile New York State Canal System is the largest state-run inland waterway system in the United States.
It dates back to the opening of the original Erie Canal in 1825, that stretched from Buffalo to Albany. Eventually, other canals linking Lake Champlain, Lake Ontario and the Finger Lakes were added.
“Our mere presence on the canals, operating our boats, at the proper speeds, and slowing down the proper locations, no wake zones, necessarily, causes all the other boats in the vicinity to become aware of it, become more aware of it, and also comply,” Niemitalo said.
In 2019, the last year the New York State Canal Corporation has statistics for, 81,620 boats traversed the system.
According to a 2020 report, multi-day travelers on the canals, and other tourism and recreational related activities, generated about $1.3 billion for the state.
The New York State Naval Militia received a grant from the Canal Corporation to cover the costs of the patrols.
The Canal Corporation was authorized to pay $12,100 for the 2025 patrols, which is 75 percent of the pay and costs associated with the mission, according to Naval Militia Capt. Don McKnight, the commander of the Military Emergency Boat Service, which includes 12 boats.
As of Sept. 25, four boats and 11 members have patrolled for 13 days on the Erie Canal and the Champlain Canal. The plan is to patrol for five more days, according to McKnight.
“Although not law enforcement, our presence on the canal has appeared to mitigate behaviors of other boaters that have otherwise caused damage to the infrastructure of the canal, especially speeding in sensitive areas,” he added.
Daily patrol locations and amount of covered area depended on the location of the patrol, Niemitalo explained.
For example, if the patrol was closer to a city with more boat traffic and marinas, fewer miles were covered because speed limits are reduced there, he said. Speed limits in those areas are set at 5 to 10 miles per hour.
In less populated areas, more miles were able to be covered per day because the speed limits goes up to 30 miles per hour or more.
“The New York Naval Militia members were able to get unmeasurable experience and training from this mission,” McKnight said.
“Each day on the water was an opportunity to not only patrol for the canal corps but to get experience navigating the lock system and perfecting boating skills,” McKnight added.
| Date Taken: | 09.26.2025 |
| Date Posted: | 09.26.2025 12:21 |
| Story ID: | 549406 |
| Location: | WATERFORD, NEW YORK, US |
| Web Views: | 39 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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