Seymour’s Loaners A Life Saver

As another boating season kicks up waves on the Long Island Sound, water safety has taken on added urgency.

That’s why Seymour’s Boatyard takes part in a loaner life jacket program sponsored by the BoatUS Foundation for Boating Safety & Clean Water.

Last summer’s fatal sinking in Oyster Bay claimed the lives of three children and generated legislation requiring vessel operators to hold a boating safety certificate (starting in November in Suffolk). 

But a late-night boat collision on Northport Harbor last weekend highlights the fact that on the water anything can happen at any moment.

Life jackets are as important as education and vigilance. Enter Seymour’s.

“Anybody can come here with children to our dock office and borrow a life jacket for the day,” Seymour’s owner Dave Weber said. “There is no charge. You sign them out and bring them back that night.”

State law requires any boater under the age of 12 to wear a life jacket. The BoatUS Foundation’s life jacket program gives gear to qualified marinas and boatyards such as Seymour’s.

“Children can’t get on our launches without a life jacket,” Weber said.

Seymour’s serves approximately 200 boats in the harbor after Memorial Day, the official start of the summer season. The Northport boatyard is the only business listed in the Town of Huntington taking part in the BoatUS program. 

So don’t take the water for granted. Expect the unexpected and wear a life jacket.