shoal did

Boaters Must Slow if Police Craft's Lights Are Flashing

Posted: May. 1 4:46 p.m.

Raleigh — Starting Tuesday, North Carolina’s 'Move Over' law extends to boating.

That's the law that says has said you must move away from a police car that is pulled over with its lights flashing or slow down if there's no room to move left.

Under the new rules, boaters within 100 feet of a law enforcement vessel that’s flashing blue lights must slow down to no-wake speed. In narrow channels, the buffer zone is 50 feet.

Violators could faces fines up to $250 dollars, plus court costs

kmac

You wouldn't believe how many dumb a**es I see fly by the coast guard or wildlife people when they are doing a stop. Talk about dangerous, these boats leave 3 foot wakes for the coasties to deal with. And of coarse there is a good chance of damage to the boats that are rafted together during the inspection. I mean how dumb can you be.

Shag

They are prosecuting those highway tickets here like mad. No plea bargain, no reduced charges, etc. The local DA is prosecuting them like passing a stopped school bus. I agree with the law and have always moved over even before they passed it but they are giving tickets when you can't possibly get over. The only option would be to slow down to a crawl which would create a greater risk of an accident.

I wonder how aggresive the marine LE are going to be.

Edit: I always have and always will slow down for a boarding but I hope they use a little common sense.

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PharmD_Heel

I personally agree with this law. I have always slowed down for a boarding inspection and will continue to do so. The sad part of this is that it has required a law to enforce somethign that should be common sense and common courtsey. I've seen way too many people barreling through the waterway when wildlife or coast gaurd is tied up to another boat for an inspection. In my opinion, that's just plain dumb, unsafe, and being a jerk on the water. But that's just my two cents worth.

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autobaun70

I fully agree with this law, under one condition............they teach the d@mn DNR & deputy sheriff folks how to properly dock a boat, and pass out fenders to them. I don't know where you are, but here if they pull along side to inspect you, you better be real quick to deploy fenders or you run a huge risk of getting a nice smudge in your gel coat. Just last weekend I had to grab the bow of a DNR whaler to keep the nose of it from bashing the side of my friends boat during a safety inspection. I am all about the powers that be doing their job, but they should be properly in both the technicalities & the execution of the task at hand, which in this case IMO means being among the most skilled at boat handling on the water. If they are not, they shouldn't be anywhere close to the helm of a boat.

Joe

You are 100% right; the same DNR guys must be in Charleston. I worry about the way those guys drive as much as I do the drunks coming back from Capers. No wake zones are apparently for other folks, at least according to the two I saw blasting under the Ben Sawyer bridge (in their WAY over powered flats boat and what looked like an older BW) last weekend.

Overcurrent

Agreed, but don't hold your breath.
One NCWRC officer who used to patrol Falls Lake bought his own with personal funds. ( that he did, that he had to....)

(This was the same officer who, instead of zipping around manaically stopping boats on plane, he would stop and check boats at the bridge no-wake zones.... )