Who:            New York State Parks Marine Services Bureau and the USS Slater Museum

What:           Ready, Set, Wear It! Life Jacket World Record Day

When:          Saturday, May 16:  9:00 – 10:00 a.m.

Where:         USS Slater – DE 766 Destroyer Escort Historical Museum
Intersection of Broadway and Quay Streets, Albany, NY

On Saturday, May 16, participants in cities around the globe will gather to set a world record for the most life jackets worn and inflatable life jackets inflated on the sixth annual Ready, Set, Wear It! Life Jacket World Record Day. The goal is not only to promote the comfortable and versatile options when it comes to life jackets, but also to educate the public about safe boating.

As a kickoff for this year’s National Safe Boating Week (May 16–22, 2015), New York State Parks Marine Services Bureau and the National Safe Boating Council will host Ready, Set, Wear It! Life Jacket World Record Day. The event is part of the yearlong Wear It! campaign to promote boating safety and voluntary, consistent wear of life jackets.  Participants wearing life jackets will receive a free life jacket safety whistle.

Last year, nearly 7,000 participants gathered at 175 events held around the world to set a new record for the number of participants who inflated their inflatable life jacket or wore an inherently buoyant life jacket.

U.S. Coast Guard statistics show that drowning was the reported cause of death in three-fourths of recreational boating fatalities in 2013, and that 84 percent of those who drowned were not wearing life jackets. 

New York State Parks encourages boaters to wear a life jacket, boat sober, and take a boating safety course – which are now available online.

For more information or to find a boating safety course, visit http://nysparks.com/recreation/boating/.