Saving lives and money

Queenstown harbourmaster Marty Black says life jackets are a must this summer. Photo by Olivia...
Queenstown harbourmaster Marty Black says life jackets are a must this summer. Photo by Olivia Caldwell.
"Life jackets save lives" is the message Queenstown Harbourmaster Marty Black will be drumming into lake-users this summer by issuing fines to anyone not using them.

Mr Black said he had seen too many accidents in recent years that could have been prevented if people had taken the correct safety measures and this year he wanted things to change.

"It's really just common sense.

"Life jackets save lives, simple as that. Wear them and if you get in trouble, they might just help you out of a situation."

Mr Black's warning comes exactly a year after Frenchmen Raphael Soubrier (21) and Yoann Firdion (24) were found drowned on Lake Wakatipu.

The pair had both set out in a child's kayak wearing ill-fitting life jackets. One was wearing a child-sized safety vest.

The fine in the Queenstown Lakes district for failing to carry or failing to wear a life jacket on a vessel for each passenger is $300 and Mr Black said he would not hesitate to issue them.

He said in the past three weeks he had handed out a dozen fines to people not wearing life jackets and with a warm dry summer forecast he expected to issue a lot more.

November's accident in Wanaka involving an experienced lake user and a life jacket which did not inflate showed just how important it was to have jackets fitted, he said.

The harbourmaster and Queenstown Coastguard would be working "reasonably close" to ensure the message gets through around Lake Wakatipu.

"We've got an intensive radio programme going which highlights 'ring ins' and gives out safety tips".

He said he encouraged locals to report anything out of the ordinary and silly behaviour on or near the lake.

Pamphlets and brochures have also been handed out around the resort listing water and boat-safety tips directly aimed at visitors.

Mr Black said many of those disobeying the rules were from out of town and had not been educated on the importance of lake safety here.

"That inflatable boat last month was bloody stupid," he said referring to a group of long-staying travellers who set out towards Hidden Island in two inexpensive inflatable boats wearing no life jackets and without telling a lake official.


Paying the price
• Fines to watch for this summer:
• Failing to wear or carry a life jacket: $300
• Towing a person not wearing a life jacket: $500
• Person under 15 years navigating a vessel: $500
• Navigating vessel under influence of alcohol: $500
• Towing in a prohibited area: $500
• Operating a craft in a dangerous manner: $500


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