Crime & Safety
Pinellas Deputies To Promote Boating Safety Over Labor Day Weekend
Pinellas Sheriff Deputies will perform boat inspections, loan personal flotation devices to boaters, and hand out t-shirts to kids wearing life vests on board in "Operation Kid Float."
The Pinellas County Sheriff's Office (PCSO) is reminding people to have a safe Labor Day weekend on the roads and the water. With that in mind, deputies are stepping up enforcement through the weekend by maintaining a higher profile on Pinellas County waterways and roadsides.
Starting Friday, September 3, the PCSO will be conducting boat safety inspections. They will focus on the proper number of life jackets, flotation cushions and sound making devices. Deputies will be watching out for impaired boaters and those operating their vessels in an unsafe manner.
As part of safety awareness for the holiday weekend, the PCSO will also launch "Operation Kid Float." Deputies will pass out t-shirts to children "caught" wearing life vests during boating.
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"Operation Kid Float" will continue through Monday, September 5.
Personal Floatation Devices (PFD) will be available to the public on a loaner basis for the Labor Day weekend. Life jackets can be picked up at Don's Dock on John's Pass, 215 128 Ave. East, Madeira Beach. PFD's will be on board and issued as needed following boat inspections. The devices must be returned after the voyage at the PCSO Marine Facility drop-off bin at 19305 Gulf Boulevard in Indian Shores.