MONTICELLO  — The Sullivan County Legislature Meeting on Thursday, May 15, began with a public service announcement from Communications Director, Dan Hust, who said, “I am part of a group of county employees who are participating in Wearing Your Life Jacket at Work Day today; it’s a very serious issue that we’re trying to bring attention to.” 

Hust said there have been approximately 80 deaths on the Delaware River from drowning since records have been kept. 

“Every single one of those, they weren’t wearing a life jacket. Every year it seems we have one or more deaths on the river or in our lakes and creeks because people were swimming and got literally in over their head. And if they had a life jacket, that very likely wouldn’t have happened.” 

Hust mentioned other factors that increase the danger of swimming (drinking alcohol, taking drugs, being reckless), but stressed that the first line of defense in river safety is wearing a life jacket. 

“They are called life savers because that’s what they do -  they save lives.”

Chair and District 2 Legislator Nadia Rajsz thanked Hust for the presentation, adding, “We do put out the signs along the Delaware River, but people would be surprised as to how many folks get on the river and think that it is not dangerous- it’s a body of water, it has currents, it is very dangerous. You will get pulled over by the Parks Service if they catch you without a life jacket, so the recommendation is to wear it for your own safety.”

Wear Your Life Jacket at Work Day is part of the Safe Boating Campaign that encourages boaters to wear a life jacket to their job and post pictures with the hashtag #wearyourlifejacketatworkday to promote boating safety. National Safe Boating Week will take place following Wear Your Life Jacket at Work Day from May 17-23. 

The Safe Boating Campaign is administered by the U.S. Coast Guard and offers a variety of resources to support local boating safety education efforts. You can follow the campaign on social media @boatingcampaign and visit their website at www.safeboatingcampaign.com.