Cold Water Warning Issued Ahead Of Trout Season Opener

Ahead of the opening of trout fishing season on April 13, the Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management says that the water will be dangerously cold, even on warm days. More than 40,000 anglers are expected to fish for 75,000 trout in waters across the state. After months of cold weather, the water temperature usually hovers in the low to mid-50's, which can cause an emergency situation in the case of a boating accident.

The DEM encourages anyone going out in a canoe, kayak or other boat is strongly encouraged to wear a life jacket. If the water temperature is less than 60 degrees, boating accidents are five times more likely to be fatal, according to a report from the U.S. Coast Guard. Falling into cold water causes the body to immediately go into shock, so even strong swimmers can find themselves unable to swim to safety.

In addition, the U.S. Coast Guard said approximately 80 percent of drownings were from boaters in vessels less than 21 feet long. Over the past few years, boating deaths involving small crafts like paddleboards, canoes and kayaks have been on the rise, as motorboat deaths have declined. Of these fatalities, more than 84 percent were not wearing life jackets.

"Cold water can kill in ways that you might not expect," said Lieutenant Steven Criscione, boating safety coordinator for DEM's Division of Law Enforcement. "Nearly everyone knows that immersion in cold water can cause hypothermia – the abnormal lowering of the body's core temperature. The effects of a cold-water immersion event, however, can contribute to death well before any drop of body core temperature."

After falling into cold water, most people will start hyperventilating, taking several large breaths in, the Coats Guard said. If a person's head goes underwater, he or she can inhale more than a quart of water, drowning immediately. Within a minute, blood pressure will increase, and will soon begin to experience numbness, weakness or loss of consciousness. The longer the person remains in the water, the more their core body temperature falls, causing extreme stiffness that makes swimming to safety impossible, before hypothermia eventually sets in. Wearing a life jacket helps keep a victim's head above water long enough for help to arrive.

"We see it time and time again in Rhode Island boating accidents," Criscione said. "A single boat on a lake or on the bay capsizes and the victim isn't wearing a life jacket, has no warning or time to put one on, and drowns due to the effects of cold water."

Anyone involved in a boating accident is encouraged to stay near the boat is possible, as it makes the likelihood of being seen and rescued far higher.

"The key is the life jacket," Criscione continued. "A person who suffers swimming failure or loss of consciousness will stay afloat wearing a life jacket, but will drown without one. There is no time to put a life jacket on before a boating accident, it would be like trying to buckle your seat belt before a car crash."