Corps of Engineers celebrates National Safe Boating Week with safety reminders for boaters

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, St. Paul District, is celebrating National Safe Boating Week by reminding boaters on the Mississippi River to be smart while on the water.

National Safe Boating Week is May 16-22.

“The Mississippi River is an amazing place to spend your time on a boat, as long as you practice water safety,” said Sam Mathiowetz, St. Paul District locks and dams chief. “There are a lot of hazards that boaters need to be aware of, including commercial tows.”

With warm weather comes an increase in commercial traffic on the river. For your safety, consider the following tips for boating around tows:

• Give tows lots of room; they cannot get out of the channel to steer around you and can take up to one-and-a-half miles to stop.
• Stay away from the turbulent water created by the propellers behind the towboat.
• Beware of boating at night, the navigation lights on the front and rear of the tow can be as much as a quarter of a mile apart
• Know the danger signals. Five short whistle blasts indicate immediate danger.
• Do not anchor in the channel and never tie off to a navigation buoy.

Additionally, be familiar with the restricted zones and their markings. These markings may consist of signs, buoys, aids to navigation and lights. Restricted areas are 600 feet upstream of the lock and 150 feet downstream of the lock.

For more information on our water safety program, please visit https://www.usace.army.mil/Missions/Civil-Works/Recreation/Water Safety/ or https://bobber.info/ for additional water safety education materials.