CARSON CITY - After two fatal boat accidents on Lake Mead, the Nevada Department of Wildlife (NDOW) reminds boaters of the importance of wearing life jackets if swimming from a boat.
Both accidents, and indeed many accidents each summer, are the result of boaters voluntarily leaving the boat and being unable to get back on the boat.
A 35-year-old man was killed June 20 when he left his boat on the Arizona side of Lake Mead. His body is yet to be recovered.
The second accident occurred in the Virgin Basin of Lake Mead June 23 when a 30-year-old Las Vegas man drowned after jumping off a boat to swim.
Even though both accidents happened in southern Nevada, game wardens have seen this type of accident in every body of water statewide over the years.
"This is one of the most common fatalities seen at the Lake Mead, among other waterways in the state," said Mike Maynard, game warden lieutenant with NDOW. "A person leaves a boat voluntarily to go swimming and then drowns trying to return to the boat. Muscle exhaustion can occur very quickly, especially when a person is drinking and trying to swim."
Heavy afternoon winds are common in Nevada, yet many boaters believe they can jump off a boat and have little to no problem swimming back to it.
Game wardens suspect alcohol was also a factor in the second accident at Lake Mead. Alcohol, swimming and high winds are deadly to would-be swimmers.
Alcohol can impair a boater's judgment, balance, vision and reaction time. It can increase fatigue and susceptibility to the effects of cold-water immersion. Sun, wind, noise, vibration and motion, "stressors" common to the boating environment, intensify the side effects of alcohol, drugs and some prescription medications, according to Maynard. Officers last weekend be conducted heightened patrols in Nevada for operating under the influence (OUI) as part of a nationwide effort to reduce OUI fatalities. The weekend program was called Operation Dry Water, and boaters can learn more at www.operationdrywater.org.
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