Ameren Missouri has joined the Missouri State Highway Patrol's Water Patrol Division in a project to promote wearing life jackets while boating on the Lake of the Ozarks. The main focus is on children, but the project is also intended to help educate boaters of all ages on the life-saving importance of wearing life jackets.
Ameren Missouri has provided the Water Patrol Division Troopers with T-shirts bearing the message, “I got caught wearing my life jacket.” Those troopers will hand out the T-shirts as a reward to children “caught” wearing their life jackets throughout the summer boating season.
“This project is a good way to recognize those boaters who are being safety conscious,” says Captain Matt Walz. “The majority of our stops on the lake are due to violations our troopers have observed, so it’s always nice to note the positive things we see boaters doing.”
According to statistics from the U.S. Coast Guard, as many as 85 percent of boaters who drown are not wearing a life jacket, even though in many cases life jackets were aboard but were not being used.
“In Missouri, life jackets are required for children under 7, but are certainly recommended for children 7 and over. Children on docks are not required to wear life jackets, but the same dangers certainly apply. The most tragic situations I’ve seen on this lake involved small children who drowned. It’s something I hope to never see again.” Walz adds.
Ameren Missouri and the Water Patrol Division have conducted similar life jacket safety promotions since the summer boating season of 2005.
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Ameren Missouri has been providing electric and gas service for more than a century, and our electric rates are among the lowest in the nation. We serve 1.2 million electric and 126,000 natural gas customers in central and eastern Missouri. Our mission is to meet their energy needs in a safe, reliable, efficient and environmentally responsible manner. Our service area covers 63 counties and more than 500 communities, including the greater St. Louis area. For more information, visit AmerenMissouri.com.