The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission is warning area boater to be aware for more than just mechanical problems. FWC Officer Jeffrey Summers says there were two more unconfirmed incidents involving jumping sturgeon this week, one resulting in minor injury.
“We’ve had three accidents this season with those things and we want [boaters] to slow down and be aware of those sturgeon because they can cause serious injury if you have a collision with one of them,” he says.
He says safe boating also involves checking your boat’s safety gear and creating a float plan in case of emergency. Florida has the highest national rate of recreational boating accidents and fatalities, but Summers says this is in part because we have the highest levels of boats. Nonetheless, they are working to bring that number down, mostly through increasing public awareness.