For more information contact:
Anthony Turner,
Public Afairs Officer
(310) 908-6950
MEDIA ADVISORY
The National Weather Service in Los Angeles has issued a high wind warning for Los Angeles and Ventura Counties continuing until Thursday. With the Memorial Day holiday weekend coming up many southern California boaters will be getting an early start to their holiday weekend destination. The U.S. Coast Guard Auxiliary reminds boaters that “a successful boating outing begins when you leave home and ends when you safely return home” and since the majority of recreational boats are transported to and from the water it is important that boaters take as much care transporting their boat, whether it be a power boat, sailboat, paddle craft or personal water craft as they do operating their boat on the water.
The National Weather Service is also forecasting winds of at least gale force continuing through Thursday night in the Santa Barbara Channel. The strong winds are expected to generate high seas of up to 12 feet in the inner waters and 18 foot seas in the outer waters. Mariners are urged to maintain safe harbor during this time and monitor NOAA weather radio for the latest information, forecasts and warnings.
Mariners are also urged to file a float plan which is a written statement of the details of an intended voyage usually filed with a friend, neighbor and/or marina operator; a document that specifically describes the vessel, equipment, crew, and itinerary of a planned voyage. (For more information about float plans visit http://www.floatplancentral.org/)
For more potentially life-saving information along with how to take a boating safety course or get a free vessel safety check from the Coast Guard Auxiliary visit http://www.uscgboating.org/. The U.S. Coast Guard Auxiliary is the uniformed civilian component of the United States Coast Guard. Created by an Act of Congress in 1939, the Auxiliary directly supports the Coast Guard in all missions, except military and direct law enforcement actions. The Coast Guard Auxiliary is an integral part of the United States Coast Guard. For more information visit http://www.cgaux.org/ if you are ready to join visit http://join.cgaux.org/ .
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