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(KNSI) — The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources says 2021 has been a deadly year for boaters.

Lisa Dugan is the DNR’s Recreation Safety Outreach Coordinator. She tells KNSI 17 people have died in boating-related incidents this year, making it the highest since 2005. With weeks of open water left this year and the waterfowl season open, that number could increase.

Dugan says often hunters are in remote locations, and help could be a long way away. She says hunters need to take extra safety steps and extra precautions, so if something does happen, they give themselves “the best chance of survival, the best chance to get out. Wearing a lifejacket, not just having it on the boat is the best thing you can do for yourself to stay safe.”

She says a personal flotation device is better than nothing, but “the foam filled life jackets, the wearable foam life jackets like people are used to; the type three life jackets. Those are really good for the cold water season because they you know also help insulate heat, they don’t require maintenance.”

She says inflatable lifejackets are OK, but they need to be maintained, and sometimes in cold water, don’t inflate all the way.

Also, with Minnesota weather changing at the drop of a hat, sometimes, if hunters are out on a bigger lake, it’s going to take time to get back to the boat launch. Dugan says it doesn’t take much to flip a duck boat loaded with gear, so make sure your boat isn’t overloaded.

If your boat does capsize, Dugan says to remember the 1-10-1 rule. “Take one minute to control your breathing, remain calm, and assess the situation. Take the next ten minutes for meaningful movement, which means make a plan. If you don’t have a lifejacket on, put one on, and try and deploy some sort of emergency communication.” After that, Dugan says there is about an hour of “useful consciousness,” depending on the water temperature. She says people who fall into cold water are more likely to drown than to die of hypothermia.

Dugan says before you head to the launch or the dock, tell someone where you’re going and what time you expect to be back, so if something does happen, help has a starting location for where to look.

For more boating safety tips, click here.

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