Charleston injury lawyers want you to know that recently, South Carolina’s waterways have seen a larger law enforcement presence looking for drunk boaters operating their watercrafts in excess of the legal limit. In a major collaborative effort of national, state local law agencies, including the Coast Guard, Department of Natural Resources, and the National Association of Safe Boating Law Administrators, are taking a hard stand against intoxicated boat operators in an effort to reduce the number of individuals drunk on the water, promote safer boating practices, and prevent serious injuries and deaths. The title for the effort is as much oxymoronic as it is serious about attacking alcohol on the water, Operation Dry Water. Operation Dry Water’s cause does not go unwarranted or without reason, the combination of alcohol and boating is the primary factor in South Carolina boat related accidents fatalities, 1 in 5 of boat related fatalities are a direct result of alcohol-impaired boaters.
Being discovered illegally inebriated by one of the aforementioned, or an unmentioned, agencies can cost an unfortunate boater big time in the big house, or big bucks by way of stiff fines being imposed by Operation Dry Water, in addition to the revocation of boating and driving privileges. The 2009 effort by the same arrested more than 220 offenders.