When Capt. Karl Anderson smelled the fire, he knew he was in trouble. He was delivering a prototype 90-foot sport-fishing catamaran south along the coast of Florida when the unmistakable odor of burning wire insulation hit him.
“One of the engines died, so I hit the starter button. Within a minute, you could smell electrical heat,” Anderson says. “I went below into the engine room and saw smoke coming from beneath the exhaust manifold on the inboard side of the starboard engine. The starter had locked up. It was now glowing red, and thick, black smoke was billowing out of the engine-room hatch. I had to shut off the electrical power to the engine.”
That’s when he realized the boat had a serious design flaw: The battery switches were located on the forward bulkhead of the engine room. He would have to take a deep breath, rush past the fire, kill the power and make it back out.
After two failed attempts, he managed to shut it down on the third—and learned a valuable lesson about how quickly a dangerous incident can escalate on a boat. While fire is not one of the top hazards that boaters face, it is one of the most lethal. Leading causes of injuries, boat damage and death, according to the latest data from the US Coast Guard, include collisions with fixed objects or other vessels; flooding, swamping or capsizing; grounding; and passenger ejection.
For each hazard, there are a variety of ways to mitigate the danger. These can range from boater education to advanced electronics and even AI.
Ejection from a vessel, either voluntary or involuntary, is the most frequently fatal event in boating, according to the US Coast Guard statistics. One tragic illustration: In November 2024, a 28-year-old woman died and five others were ejected from a boat en route from Miami to the Florida Keys. According to the Florida Fish and Wildlife Commission, the 39-foot center-console was in Calda Channel when it took an unexpected sharp turn and ejected all six passengers into the water. No one was wearing a personal flotation device—going against Coast Guard recommendations for boating at high speeds, in inclement weather, in high-traffic areas, at night or during other hazardous times.
Grounding is the most common incident that boaters face. Although the risk of fatality is relatively low, a grounding can cause significant damage or complete loss of the vessel. The most common causes are operator inattention and inexperience, as well as excessive speed. As with ejections, each factor is compounded by darkness or bad weather.
Boater inattention is something that Capt. George Creasy sees a lot. He has hundreds of yacht deliveries under his belt, primarily along the Eastern Seaboard. He says he knows the Intracoastal Waterway as well as anyone, but he still keeps a sharp lookout amid the frequently shifting sandbars.
“One thing I see a lot of boat owners doing, even some who are very experienced as well as those who are still learning the ropes, is relying too much on their electronics,” he says. “You’ll have people who are heads-down in their plotter or sounder—or both—and they’re not paying attention to what’s going on around them. When you lose that situational awareness, especially at night or in rough seas, that’s when you’re much more likely to run aground.”
Here Are More Ways to Help Keep Boaters Safe at Sea: Offshore-Cruising Safety Tips
Speed is another factor. “Just because you can run at planing speeds doesn’t mean you always should,” Creasy says. “Things happen a lot faster at 30 knots than they do at 10, so if there’s any doubt of what’s ahead of you, I always recommend slowing down. Give yourself more time to think, and to analyze the situation. We’re always on a time schedule for deliveries, but it’s better to be a little late than to have to explain that you dinged up the boat’s running gear because you were in a hurry.”
Creasy recommends operating the boat from the highest possible helm position: “Elevation gives you a much better view down into the water. A lot of times, even when it’s cold, windy or rainy, I’ll put on my foul-weather gear and run the boat from the flybridge rather than the lower helm when I’m in unfamiliar waters, just because I feel like I can see so much better from up there. It’s worth a little discomfort.”
Collisions—whether involving another vessel or a floating or fixed object—are another common cause of boating accidents. Watchkeeping can be monotonous, but this is an area where AI-enabled technology can help. Several manufacturers have introduced AI-based systems that analyze the waters ahead using all-weather cameras and black-box processors. These systems identify objects in the water and display warnings as audible and visual alarms. When combined with AIS and radar, these systems can greatly increase the helmsman’s situational awareness.
There’s a good chance that kind of system might have saved Atlantis, an 80-foot sport yacht that sank on Memorial Day weekend in 2024. The boat was running at speed approximately 3 miles off St. Augustine, Florida, when it apparently hit a large, floating, square metal marker denoting an offshore dredge pipe. The collision tore a hole in the bow, and the vessel went down in a matter of minutes, according to the US Coast Guard. Local authorities rescued the two crewmembers, one of whom suffered minor injuries.
Flooding, swamping and capsizing are also common causes of vessel damage, including when a vessel sinks at the dock. In an extended rainstorm, unless connected to shore power, a boat relies on battery power to operate the vitally important bilge pumps. When the batteries drain, the pumps can no longer keep up with the incoming deluge. Or perhaps a worn bilge-pump impeller fails catastrophically just when it’s needed the most.
A second scenario involves being caught in rough weather, such as a violent thunderstorm or a waterspout that can capsize a vessel. The key here is knowing the vessel and its limitations. Frequently inspect, test and replace bilge pumps. Install a high-water alarm (or two). Consider using remote monitoring systems, which can send real-time notifications of potentially dangerous situations such as low-battery voltage or high water in the bilge. Having a high-volume emergency pump on board is a great idea too.
No matter the boater’s level of experience, there is always room for more education. In Anderson’s case, after extinguishing the onboard fire, he decided to be better prepared for the future. He now has fire hoods for breathing, and mini flashlights for every guest stateroom. He has two of them for the engine-room entrance, in case of thick smoke or darkness.
“I religiously adhere to annual fire-equipment service on every boat I run,” he says. “I also have more fire extinguishers than are required. With so many flammable items on a boat, there are different canisters for certain situations, and knowing which one to use can help you not make the fire worse by using the wrong one. And I recommend our crewmembers take a firefighting course at least once in their career.”
Falls, Capsizing and Ejections
The most frequent event in fatal incidents involves people ending up in the water. A fall overboard, capsizing and a person voluntarily departing a vessel account for more than half of fatal incidents. The majority of those people are not wearing a PFD. Alcohol is the leading known contributing factor in fatal boating accidents.
Fatalities Trending Down
In 2023, boating fatalities were down 11.3 percent from the previous year, dropping from 636 to 564. The fatality rate in 2023 was 4.9 deaths per 100,000 registered recreational vessels, a 9.3 percent decrease from the previous year’s rate of 5.4 deaths per 100,000 registered recreational vessels. By comparison, in 1971, when the Federal Boat Safety Act was passed, the rate was 20.6 deaths per 100,000 registered recreational vessels.
No Smoking, Please
For boats under 26 feet, the US Coast Guard requires at least one extinguisher rated 5-B aboard. Boats 26 to 40 feet must have two 5-B extinguishers, while boats 40 to 65 feet must be equipped with a minimum of three 5-B extinguishers. For boats greater than 65 feet, at least one larger 20-B extinguisher is mandatory, with the number depending on gross tonnage. B-rated extinguishers are used for gasoline, oil and grease fires.
What type of PFD is best?
Type I PFDs are designed for rough waters and provide the most buoyancy. Type II PFDs are for use in calmer waters. Type III, most commonly used for watersports, offers flotation but will not turn someone face up. Type IV are throwable flotation devices and are not designed to be worn, while Type V PFDs are usually inflatable wearables, which are legal when used correctly in accordance with their design.
