Scoop has an Ethical Paywall
Lack of Lifejackets Leads to Fines
14 November 2013
Lack of Lifejackets Leads to Fines
Two separate incidents where kayakers without lifejackets were paddling on Lake Wakatipu yesterday have left Queenstown Harbourmaster Marty Black shaking his head.
The first involved an English visitor kayaking in Queenstown Bay, who had been provided with a kayak but no lifejacket by his accommodation. Mr Black said he would be following up with the establishment to ensure that they passed on the simple water safety message to their guests: everyone kayaking or boating in any craft less than 6m in length must wear a lifejacket at all times.
Having dispatched the English kayaker back to shore, Mr Black then checked on another kayak in the middle of the lake, and discovered a Frenchman without a lifejacket. “This guy was within a kilometre of where two French kayakers drowned a couple of years ago because they weren’t wearing lifejackets.”
Mr Black said both kayakers would be issued with $300 offence notices for breaching the QLDC bylaw. He said it was unusually early in the season for people to be flouting the lifejacket rule. “There’s no grey area with lifejackets – wear them or be fined,” he said. There will be constant patrols on all the local lakes this summer to enforce safe boating and remind users of the bylaws relating to water safety.
ENDS
Gordon Campbell: On The Royal Commission’s Fine-tuning Of Vaccine Mandates And Lockdowns
NZ Government: Chemical Weapons And Iranian Missiles Targeted In New Russia Sanctions
Ministry For Culture And Heritage: Reverberations Of Erebus Disaster Still Felt 45 Years Later
Watercare Services: No Cause For Concern After Slightly Elevated Levels Of Arsenic Detected In Treated Waikato River Water
Te Pāti Māori: Government’s First Year A ‘Catastrophe For Māori’
Department Of Internal Affairs: Samoan Citizenship Bill Passes Into Law
NZ National Party: National Acknowledges The Passing Of Hon Nikki Kaye
