4th Of July: Northport Police Give Stern Warning To Boozy Boaters

NORTHPORT, NY — The 4th of July holiday is officially here, and police in Northport are putting boozy boaters on notice.

Police wrote in an Instagram post that residents can expect to see extra patrols during the 4th of July weekend. The patrols will "strictly" enforce intoxicated boating laws.

"Please be responsible and don’t end up behind bars," police wrote.

View this post on Instagram

Northport Police would like to wish everyone a safe Fourth of July. Northport Police will have extra marine patrols out for the 4th of July weekend. We will be strictly enforcing Boating While Intoxicated(BWI). Please be responsible and don’t end up behind bars.
A post shared by Northport Police (@northportpolice) on Jul 3, 2019 at 6:10am PDT

Alcohol use is the leading contributing factor in boating accident deaths in cases where
the primary cause is known, according to the U.S. Coast Guard. Booze was listed as the leading factor in 19 percent of deaths in 2017, the latest year data was available.

Furthermore, alcohol use ranked among the top five contributors to boat accidents overall, leading to 275 crashes, 102 deaths and 227 injuries.