It’s practically impossible to live in Norfolk, Portsmouth, Hampton, Virginia Beach or any other city or county in southern and eastern Virginia (VA) without spending time on the water. Sailing, fishing, motorboating and riding personal watercraft such as Jet Skis and Sea-Doos are favorite pastimes and careers for many Virginians living and working within easy reach of the Chesapeake Bay, Atlantic Ocean, Elizabeth River, James River, Nottoway River, Lake Gaston and many other inviting waterways too numerous to mention.
In fact, so many people take to the water so often that they find it easy to forget that they need to prevent and prepare for accidents that can cause them injuries and cost them their lives.
In an editorial published in the March 27, 2011, Virginian-Pilot, U.S. Coast Guard Auxilliary staff officer Rawl Gelinas noted that tragedies can occur suddenly when boaters fail to observe the following safety rules:
- Wear a proper-fitting life jacket
- Wear a survival suit when boating during the fall, winter and spring, when the water temperature is below 70 degrees.
- Stay with your capsized boat and try to get onto the hull so you can get dry and make yourself as visible as possible to searchers and rescuers.
- Complete the Virginia-mandated boater’s safety course before taking the controls of any boat or personal watercraft.
- Never drink and boat. Operating a watercraft while impaired by alcohol or drugs can be as dangerous and deadly as drunk and drugged driving.
Gelinas listed several recent drowning deaths in and around Hampton Roads, mentioning that in each case, the victim was not outfitted with a personal floatation device or insulated protective suit.
As the weather warms and the number of boats and personal watercraft, or PWCs, plying our area’s waterways increase, I want everyone to take the lessons and tips offered by Gelinas to heart. Beyond dying from drowning, hypothermia or exposure, people often suffer brain injuries and physical injuries ranging from cuts to broken bones when boats and PWCs crash, capsize or run aground.
Avoiding injury and death on the water can be as simple as staying sober and wearing a life preserver. Here’s hoping everyone takes those precautions.
EJL
About the Editors: The Shapiro, Cooper, Lewis & Appleton personal injury law firm with offices in Virginia (VA) and North Carolina (NC) edits the injury law blogs Virginia Beach Injuryboard, Norfolk Injuryboard and Northeast North Carolina Injuryboard as pro bono services.
Rick Shapiro has practiced personal injury law for over 30 years in Virginia, North Carolina, and throughout the Southeastern United States. He is a Board-Certified Civil Trial Advocate by the National Board of Trial Advocacy (ABA Accredited) and has litigated injury cases throughout the eastern United States, including wrongful death, trucking, faulty products, railroad, and medical negligence claims. During his three-decade career, Shapiro has won client appeals before the VA Supreme Court, VA Court of Appeals, NC Supreme Court, SC Supreme Court, WV Supreme Court, TN Supreme Court, and three times before the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit, underscoring Shapiro’s trial achievements. In addition, he and his law firm have won settlements/verdicts in excess of $100 million. His success in and out of the courtroom is a big reason why he was named 2019 “Lawyer of the Year” in railroad law in U.S. News & World Report's Best Lawyers publication (Norfolk, VA area), and he has been named a “Best Lawyer” and “Super Lawyer” by those peer-reviewed organizations for multiple years. Rick was also named a “Leader in the Law, Class of 2022” by Virginia Lawyers Weekly (total of 33 statewide honorees consisting of lawyers and judges across Virginia). And in September 2023, Rick was selected as a recipient of the National Board of Trial Advocacy (NBTA) 2023 President’s Award. Although many nominations were submitted from across the country, Rick was just one of eight attorneys chosen by the prestigious National Board which certifies civil trial attorneys across the U.S. Rick was also recently named to Virginia Lawyers Weekly 2024 Virginia’s Go To Lawyers Medical Malpractice. The attorneys awarded this honor are nominated by their colleagues and chosen by a panel from the publication.
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