| For the 47 Atlantic Ocean inlets from New York to Florida examined in this study, the U.S. Coast Guard Office of Boating Safety recorded 493 recreational boating accidents from 1995 to 2001. These accidents involved 617 vessels and resulted in 19 deaths, 188 severe injuries, and more than {dollar}2,334,000 in property damage.; The goals of this study are twofold. First, in an exploratory sense, this study seeks to determine the factors---whether human error, environmental conditions, or vessel-related problems---primarily responsible for these accidents and their severe outcomes. Second, in an investigative sense, this study seeks to determine if the presence of jetties at an inlet is a significant predictor of either boating accident frequency or severity. Much debate, indeed, has arisen over jetty construction in the United States, with the traditional argument citing the need for jetties from a navigational safety standpoint and a newer argument contending that jetties could, in fact, lead to increased boating accidents as well as increased severity of those accidents. (Abstract shortened by UMI.)... |
