Boating safety

Having spent thousands of hours on the water and travelled hundreds of thousands of miles around the world, I have come across a few ‘interesting’ situations on the water.

Unfortunately, some of the worst have been in New Zealand – largely due to our poor knowledge of the basic ‘rules of the road’ at sea. (After all, in our country we are not made to learn the rules before going boating.)

So I have recently been testing my theory – mainly by asking people I go fishing with – who gives way when there is another boat approaching, and the results have been very poor. Some of the people who failed to respond correctly would be considered ‘old sea dogs’ and men of the sea, so on-the-water experience isn’t necessarily enough in this instance. Consequently, you might have similar short-comings. So please, for everyone’s sake, read on and make sure you understand these basic and vital rules of the road on the ocean. After all, it is your responsibility to know them; if something goes wrong and you’re investigated, you’ll be nailed if they find you made the wrong decision. (If you have an accident, ignorance of the law is not accepted as an excuse.)

This following is all about collision avoidance and what to do if you’re on a collision course with another boat. Let’s start with the basics…

Skipper responsibility

As already mentioned, it is the skipper’s responsibility to ensure safety (which includes knowing and understanding the rules that apply) when out on the water. Start by ensuring everyone on board wears a lifejacket, as it’s often too late to retrieve them and put them on when trouble hits.

Keep a lookout

You must keep a good lookout at all times using every available means and know how to avoid collisions. It is your responsibility to stay alert for other boats, kayaks, swimmers, obstacles and any other hazards you might encounter. So keep focused on the water ahead, especially if travelling at speed. Listen as well as look. If using radar, regularly alter your settings to ensure that all vessels in the area can be detected and keep a visual lookout as well.

Stick to safe speeds

You must be older than 15 years to operate a power boat at speeds greater than 10 knots.

However, always travel at a safe speed, especially around boat traffic, in bad weather, and when visibility is poor. Basically, if in doubt, slow down!

You must not exceed five knots when:

• Within 200m of the shore
• Within 200m of a boat displaying a divers flag
• Within 50m of any other boat
• Any person on a power boat has any of their body outside the rails or edge of the deck.

I see boaties going along with their kids sitting on the bow with their legs hanging over the side – this is very dangerous and illegal, so don’t do it!

I also see people going dangerously fast, and it’s scary to watch – be aware of your speed and of other water users.

Port and starboard

Port is the left side of the boat looking forward and starboard is on the right side of the boat looking forward. You need to think of port and starboard in colours also – port is red and starboard is green. A good way to remember this is by using this saying: ‘ There’s no more port left in the bottle,’ which reminds us that port is on the left. Also, port is a reddish colour, providing another good association. Now let’s look at what to do in a few basic situations…

Head on

When facing a head-on situation, each vessel must turn to starboard (right). When you do this, exaggerate your turn to starboard and show them the port side of your boat. This lets the other vessel know you have seen them.

Overtaking

When overtaking (you are deemed to be overtaking if approaching another boat anywhere in a 135-degree sector at its stern), you must give way. The give-way boat must pass astern (behind) the stand-on boat, while the stand-on boat maintains the same course and speed.

There are specific rules that apply to channels and harbours.

When power meets power

You must give way to another boat on your starboard (right) side. A good way to remember is if you can see the port (red) side of the boat; think of it as a red stop light and give way.

When two boats meet

When two boats meet, one must give way (give-way boat) and the other has the right of way (stand-on boat).

When things go wrong

If the give-way boat does not appear to be giving way, the stand-on boat must take action to avoid a collision. The stand-on boat should turn to starboard (right).

When power meets sail, rowing or paddling

You must give way to all of the above when in a power boat.

Being the boat with right of way (stand-on boat)

This is where I see the most mistakes on the water. If you’re the stand-on boat, you need to hold your course and speed, and let the other vessel give way to you. If you do not know the basic rules and start turning when you shouldn’t, it creates confusion, especially with the approaching vessel, who should give way to you. So hold your speed and course, but if it appears the other vessel is not going to give way, take action to avoid a collision by turning to starboard (right).

In channels and harbours

• You are not allowed to anchor mid-channel to fish.
• Keep to the starboard (right side) of the channel.
• Inside a harbour you must stay away from ships over 500 tons by at least 50m. Boats this size take longer to stop and turn, so leave at least 500m clear when ahead of them.
• Stay 200m away from tankers.
• Small craft must keep out of the way of larger vessels restricted by the size of the channel.

Our waterways are becoming very busy; I have seen many close calls here. Don’t risk hurting yourself, your family or anyone else on the water – remember, it is your responsibility to know the rules. However, once you have learnt these basic collision prevention rules and started using them, you’ll feel more confident and relaxed on the water.