Marine Safety SA March 2024 Newsletter
- Get ready for your Easter long weekend boating adventure!
- Marine Safety SA cars are sporting a fresh new look
- Granite Island beacon update
- Lucindale field days
- Children's lifejacket essentials
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Get ready for your Easter long weekend boating adventure!
Before heading out ensure all your safety equipment is onboard and brush up on the boating rules.
Our Marine Safety Officers (MSO’s) will be patrolling coastal waters and the River Murray from Mannum to Renmark, keeping a keen eye on safe boating practices - especially maintaining the 4-knot speed limit near people and unpowered craft.
Remember to stay informed and refresh your knowledge on the rules by checking out our safe vessel speeds and safety equipment on board pages before your trip.
Last Easter, despite the unfavourable weather conditions, the team completed 165 vessel checks, uncovering 80 non-compliant vessels. This year, our goal is to reduce non-compliance by educating more boaters, so if you spot the team on the water this weekend, don’t hesitate to ask them any boating safety questions. Plus, grab some free Marine Safety SA educational stickers to keep your boating safety knowledge sharp.
Remember, everyone deserves to enjoy the water safely, even during busy periods. Want to know more? Watch these videos on safe operation on the Murray River.
Marine upgrades
Marine Safety SA cars are sporting a fresh new look
Photo (above): Marine Safety SA wrapped car
The Marine Safety SA vehicles are now wrapped with eye-catching boating safety messaging, serving as a reminder of where to find essential boating safety information in SA.
Keep an eye out for the cars at boat ramps and various marine safety and boating events statewide.
Whenever you spot one of our Marine Safety SA cars at a boat ramp, it signifies that our dedicated MSOs are on site, offering valuable education on safe boating practices. They're there to ensure vessels are operating safely and equipped with all necessary boating safety gear.
The wrapped cars help promote the Marine Safety SA website as the go-to destination for comprehensive boating safety information. You'll find online tool and tips for checking safety equipment, lifejackets and reporting hazards and incidents on the water.
Granite Island beacon update
Photo (above): New Granite Island beacon
If you have visited Victor Harbor recently, you might have noticed a change on the Granite Island breakwater: a new navigation beacon.
This update was necessary because the old beacon, made of a small, galvanized steel drop-down pole, had corroded severely from exposure to seawater spray and harsh conditions.
In its place, a more durable PVC-filled concrete structure has been installed, better suited to withstand the tough coastal environment. This improvement ensures safer navigation for mariners into the future.
Events
Lucindale field days
Photo (above): Marine Safety SA vessel and vehicle set up
This month we had a fantastic time at the Lucindale field days connecting with many members of the southeast region’s boating community.
Our dedicated MSOs were on hand throughout the event, engaging with visitors, answering their boating safety queries, and distributing educational stickers and flyers. Being part of the Blue Yakka Trail was a highlight for us this year.
Children were encouraged to participate by answering a boating safety question about lifejackets and were rewarded with a Marine Safety SA drink bottle for their efforts.
In addition, we hosted a giveaway competition where attendees who signed up for the Marine Safety SA newsletter had the chance to win one of two new lifejackets.
Congratulations to Melissa from Lucindale and Robert from Kingston, who are the lucky winners!
Our MSOs also met more of the southeast community on water in the Beachport and Robe areas before and after the field day patrolling the waters along the coast in this region.
Keep informed about our officers' upcoming activities in your area by following our Marine Safety SA Facebook page.
Education
Children's lifejacket essentials
Photo (above): Child wearing a level 100 lifejacket
Photo (above): You must wear a level 50 lifejacket on a personal watercraft
Lifejackets are the most important piece of safety equipment for everyone while boating, especially for children.
On vessels 12 metres and under, children up to 12 years of age must always wear a lifejacket when on the open deck.
In semi-protected and unprotected waters, children must wear a lifejacket level 100 or higher. These lifejackets provide sufficient flotation to keep the body and head above water, thanks to their flotation collar. In protected waters like the River Murray, children can wear a level 50, 100, or higher lifejacket while on the open deck of a boat.
However, if opting for a level 50 lifejacket for a child on the river, it is important to note that:
- A level 50 lifejacket has less floatation than a level 100, with flotation panels only on the front and back
- This type of lifejacket will not support your child’s head when swimming or while in the water.
Children’s lifejacket wear on personal watercraft (PWC) and water skiing
Children must wear a level 50 lifejacket if waterskiing or as a passenger on a personal watercraft (PWC). This type of lifejacket is specifically chosen to minimise the risk of neck injuries in case of falls. Before undertaking these activities consider whether your child is old and strong enough to keep their head up in the water if they fall from a PWC or water-skiing device.
For more information on children and lifejackets visit the Marine Safety SA website.