Chris Edmonston: Hi! I'm Chris Edmonston with the BoatUS Foundation, talking today about boating safety. Right now let's spent a few minutes and talk about homeland security. One of the great things about being out on the water is you can pretty much go where ever you have enough water to float your boat. While that still holds true today, there are certain new regulations and some restrictions that impact where we operate our boats because of current and past world events. As a boater, knowing how to act in certain situations can help make your trip safer and more enjoyable and it can also help protect our country. In certain areas of the country there are naval protection zones, these zones are designed to prevent attacks against our Navy by placing restrictions on how closely you may come to a naval vessel. You may not operate within 100 yards of a naval vessel at all, if there is a situation where you will be within that distance you must contact the naval vessel or the Coast Guard Escort on Channel 16 to arrange the passage. Violations of a naval protection zone are a felony offense but more importantly both Navy and Coast Guard personnel are authorized to use deadly force to protect naval ships. Well as a boater you're probably familiar with the waterways that you're on, some things that might stand out or people diving in an unusual location or taking pictures of sensitive shore structures or facilities, even people out on a boat dressed in an unusual manner. These are all things that you can report to the Coast Guard. Finally the most important thing you can do on the water is operate your boat in a safe and responsible manner. Quite frankly, the fewer accidents and fatalities there are out there the more time our law enforcement personnel will have to defend our homeland. Hey! It's been a great time out on the water. Hope to see you next time.