Authorities urge watercraft safety while recreating on lake
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LAKE COUNTY — Flathead Lake is an ideal cool place to spend the blazing last days of summer, but Lake County Undersheriff Dan Yonkin reminds people that fun outings can end up in a trip to the hospital or jail if proper safety measures aren’t taken.
Lake County Sheriff’s Deputies have been busy patrolling and responding to calls on the water this summer.
One man ended up in the Lake County Jail on July 20 after he refused to stop a wave runner for deputies who tried to pull him over for traveling too fast, too close to shore. There is a no wake zone within 200 feet of shore around Flathead Lake.
“It started in Blue Bay, headed northbound and deputies tried several times to get the driver to stop,” Yonkin said. “He went all the way to Yellow Bay.”
Once apprehended, field sobriety tests indicated the man was intoxicated.
Daniel W. Schaub, 56, of Avon, Colorado was charged with boating under the influence, operating a watercraft in a reckless and negligent manner, improper display of identification numbers, and failure to carry a fire extinguisher.
Yonkin said people should remember that too much sun and too much alcohol can become problematic.
“When you are out on the water, the sun will increase some of the effects from drinking,” Yonkin said. “What might not seem like as much of an impairment becomes one rather quickly.”
Sober outings can also be dangerous if people aren’t cautious. Yonkin recalled one recent incident where a child went overboard from a boat. All of the adults in the boat went in the lake to try and save the child, leaving no one in the boat to pull everyone back in. A rescue had to be conducted to get the people safely to shore.
Falling in the water can be risky, Yonkin said.
“In spite of what the outdoor temperatures are doing, our lake temperatures remain pretty cool,” he said. “Anything less than 70 degrees can cause hypothermia very quickly.”
Live preservers make poor insulation, but should still be worn, the undersherriff said.
He also noted that all passengers in a water vessel who are under the age of 12 must wear a life preserver if the boat is in motion. Adults aren’t required to wear the devices, but by law there must be one life vest per person on the vessel.
