It's That Time Of Year Again. Idiot Boaters Don't Know What A Dive Flag Is

[Coztick]

I find so many boaters here do not even know what a dive flag is. I print and post signs at marinas and laminated ones at boat launches when I am at them. It is my way of educating boaters.
DEMA has a good one you can download and print at http://c.ymcdn.com/sites/www.dema.o...ted/DiveFlagAwarenessPoster2013_LegalSize.pdf

This was the first positive post I saw.
CHEERS underH2Oman!
DavidFL is poised to be a hero if he walks the walk. Sounds like he knows how to get it rolling. Nothing like a humorous video with a edgey title going viral to reach the masses these days.(c'mon Hollywood!)

 

[100days-a-year]

Without enforcement and heavy penalties many people will not comply with even the most simple safety guidelines anymore.Everyone knows drunk driving is dangerous but 10s of thousands are killed yearly by those idiots.Factoring in how many fewer cops there are in the water and the lack of required insurance and training combined with all the intoxicated operators it's no surprise there are these kinds of incidents.Surprising that there aren't more.Add in the population density of the S part of Florida and it is near inevitable.

Maybe an compressed air dyepack on the float could at least mark the perpetrators for a while.

I am happy to be so far offshore and deep as to not see stupid human tricks everyday.Some trips I'
ll go days without seeing anything other than freighters,cruise ships and Naval vessels.I miss our yearly trips to the Keys but not the congestion and aggravation.

 

[The Chairman]

Without enforcement and heavy penalties

Unfortunate, but true. The fine is higher for diving without a flag than for running over a flag and causing an injury. Violating my space should be an automatic $1,000.00 fine. Do that and watch the boaters learn about flag etiquette in a heart beat.

 

[tarponchik]

This is not just boaters, this is Florida. Google "florida man" and you'll find lots of exciting news. Like, "Florida Man Arrested for Beating His Girlfriend with a Pet Alligator", "Florida Man Shoots Self, Does Not Notice fro 3 Days", "Florida Man Running from Police Gets His Arm Bitten Off by Gator" etc etc.

 

[The Chairman]

Yah, but most of that is click bait. Not true at all.

 

[Scuba_Jenny]

Later this evening I will start a shared "Google Docs" document to begin collecting a plan....ideas on exactly what sign(s) and other media with which to start....ideas on how to distribute whatever media we decide on....beginning framework for cost estimates on which to base a fundraising plan. Anyone who wants to contribute send me an IM/message/conversation (not sure what the right term is for for the new SB); this is Scuba_Jenny's idea; I'm just out to provide a medium for collaboration on how to turn her idea into reality.

Every freaking year there is a post in the Florida Conchs about the boaters and their lack of knowledge of a dive flag. We know FWC can't be out there to catch everybody. We know how huge this problem is. We need to be proactive to keep ourselves safe. It's about time to stop complaining and either be part of the problem or part of the solution. I can't save the world, but I sure can help in my little part.

Thank you DavidFL for offering to be part of this team. yeah. I delegated you ! Woot!

 

[tekkydiver]

I don't know where you dive, but down here the majority of divers 1. use a flag, 2. know how dangerous it is out there on the ocean with boaters, 3. think there needs to be something done about it. The only ones who might think otherwise are totally noobs who haven't experienced a near hit.

Majority.... That means 51 do, 49 don't. I can tell you first hand, I see dive boats in Boynton who routinely put divers in the water with NO FLAGS. Those boats allow divers to send up a sausage. While a dive flag is a recognizable symbol and has legal standing, a sausage inflated correctly or not, is no more than debris in the water. Also, many dive boats; commercial and recs alike, fly dive flags from the boats rod holders in the stern or other low points, where the flag is obstructed from view and can only be seen when an approaching vessel is quite close. additionally I often see boats displaying an undersized 12 inch flag. It's hardly visible from a significant range. Even the required 24" flag can, at times, be difficult to see. On a regular basis I find divers with broken dive flags the are lying flat on the surface. And it is also common to see snorkelers or speros operating in the inlet with no flag at all. A welcome change to the law would be a 24 inch flag for divers and a 3x5 ft. flag for the vessel.

Yes there are times when a responsible boater in will inadvertently approach a dive flag. We do all look out for them, and prefer to keep more than the required distance. When ocean conditions are more "sporty" Flags that are 12 inches off the surface can be impossible to see. Often times commercial dive boats operating on the Pompano to West Palm reef line, will string divers out over a mile! Captains would be well advised to stay closer to their divers, especially in a region that has over 50,000 registered vessels. Along the beach, every thing is compacted and divers are too challenged by paddle boarders, windsurfers, kite boarders and personal watercraft. When I surface I am always listening for the sound of boat engines.

My diver flag is atop a 48" of PVC, making it much more visible to approaching vessels. Who ever is piloting my boat when I am in the water knows to stay between on coming boat traffic and my flag.

To simply blame boaters is incorrect.

 

[The Chairman]

Those boats allow divers to send up a sausage.

If they are flying a flag from the boat, and stay within 300 ft, of the divers then they are fine, within state waters. If they are three miles out and in federal waters, dive flags are optional and sausages are more common.

 

[boulderjohn]

A good friend of mine is an avid fisherman, going out through the Hillsboro Inlet regularly in a small boat. A former diver himself, he is well aware of the need to stay away from dive flags and is very careful about it. He said, though, that from your vantage point near water level in a small boat, it can sometimes be very hard to see dive flags if there are even mild waves until you are almost upon them. It is much easier, of course, when you see a dive boat nearby, giving you a clue that you need to watch for them.

 

[geogator]

I print and post signs at marinas and laminated ones at boat launches when I am at them. DEMA has a good one you can download and print at http://c.ymcdn.com/sites/www.dema.o...ted/DiveFlagAwarenessPoster2013_LegalSize.pdf

This is awesome. Another place that REALLY could use these is on Rainbow River, not just at the boat ramp but the KAYAK launches as well. Paddle craft are silent and even though I try to look around in all directions when surfacing, they are fast in the current and can come up behind you quickly. Plus, paddle craft operators (canoes, kayaks, paddleboarders) rarely know what a flag is for and aren't told about them by the rental businesses. They'll then pull right up next to a flag and be obliviously looking at something, not realizing someone is below them. Even worse, sometimes that someone is freediving or snorkeling and needs to surface immediately only to be blocked by one or more boats. I've seen this at Ginnie and other springs along the Suwannee as well. Same thing goes for the tubers.