However, as mentioned above, too much reliance on safety gear can make one complacent and that is when mistakes are much more likely to happen. Ours is a 900 foot cliff, and I instill terror into those who sail with us about what will happen when they hit the bottom of that cliff. If they don't believe me, I'll chuck a coconut overboard and tell them to watch it carefully while I call off the time it would take us to get the boat turned around and headed back for the coconut. Then I ask, "where is the MOB?" Rarely, if ever, is it still in sight even though they have been watching it very carefully. Then they get it.
I will second the complacency breeds carelessness, Capta. I see it in an industrial environment daily both with safety and quality issues. The incidence of errors increases with every system installed to prevent these same errors. Here is a lovely breakdown of fatalities provided for 2016 by our friends in the CG. The number of drowning fatalities for sailboats is tiny. I don't belittle anyone for wearing one. My crew gets briefed and practices in MOB procedures but they also get the real world 'coconut over the side' usually a chunk of log in 1 to 2 foot waves. Loads of fun having them try to keep whatever flotsam has been spotted in sight in even mild conditions and having them try to get back to it.
2016 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
In 2016, the Coast Guard counted 4,463 accidents that involved 701 deaths, 2,903 injuries and approximately $49 million dollars of damage to property as a result of recreational boating accidents. The fatality rate was 5.9 deaths per 100,000 registered recreational vessels. This rate represents a 11.3% increase from last year’s fatality rate of 5.3 deaths per 100,000 registered recreational vessels. Compared to 2015, the number of accidents increased 7.3%, the number of deaths increased 12%, and the number of injuries increased 11.1%. Where cause of death was known, 80% of fatal boating accident victims drowned. Of those drowning victims with reported life jacket usage, 83% were not wearing a life jacket. Eight out of every ten boaters who drowned were using vessels less than 21 feet in length. Alcohol use is the leading known contributing factor in fatal boating accidents; where the primary cause was known, it was listed as the leading factor in 15% of deaths. Where instruction was known, 77% of deaths occurred on boats where the operator did not receive boating safety instruction. Only 13% percent of deaths occurred on vessels where the operator had received a nationally-approved boating safety education certificate. There were 171 accidents in which at least one person was struck by a propeller. Collectively, these accidents resulted in 24 deaths and 175 injuries. Operator inattention, operator inexperience, improper lookout, excessive speed, and machinery failure rank as the top five primary contributing factors in accidents. Where data was known, the most common vessel types involved in reported accidents were open motorboats (47%), personal watercraft (18%), and cabin motorboats (15%). Where data was known, the vessel types with the highest percentage of deaths were open motorboats (47%), kayaks (13%), and canoes (9%). The 11,861,811 recreational vessels registered by the states in 2016 represent a 0.04% decrease from last year when 11,867,049 recreational vessels were registered. Recreational Boating Statistics 2016 6
