While open water might symbolize freedom of movement, the reality is that the waterways around Sacramento tend to be congested. This is especially true during vacation times.
This is usually not a problem if everybody operates their boats with reasonable caution and responsibility. Unfortunately, lapses in judgment and care still cause severe, life-changing injuries out on the water. Boaters should be especially vigilant for negligent operators when navigating specific areas of the water.
Watching out around marinas
One of the main places to exercise caution is around the approach to popular marinas. These facilities often hold hundreds of boats, and entrances have the potential to become quite busy. Furthermore, marinas also often have long, narrow access routes by necessity.
Negligence on the part of boaters can also contribute to the risk of injury around marinas. For example, people might stay out on the water for too long, becoming too tired to operate their watercraft effectively. Some even make the disastrous decision to consume alcohol while operating their vehicle.
Taking care at launches
Some waterways have less centralized access management, such as lakes in public recreation areas. These areas tend to have many more launches than more developed waterways, a fact that lowers congestion and could make boating somewhat safer. Nevertheless, boat launches still pose a relatively high risk of collision and injury.
Of course, negligent acts have the potential to injure people beyond collisions between watercraft. A reckless boater might injure a passenger who was waterskiing. An impaired or distracted boater might injure people in a protected swimming zone. Regardless of the details, the severe injuries that result could change someone’s life forever.