A New App Aims to Keep Pittsburgh Boaters Safer
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ new digital device provides information on navigation, water levels and more.
photo via flickr
Boating season has begun, meaning Pittsburgh’s three rivers and 16 reservoirs will be teeming with thousands of skiffs, dinghies, bowriders and more from now until September.
Pittsburgh is a popular place for boating — it has the second largest amount of registered boaters in the country. But capsizing, collisions, groundings and other accidents always pose a risk.
This is why the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Pittsburgh launched a new app in May that intends to help everyone from longtime boaters to kayaking tourists stay safe on Pittsburgh waters.
The app, which bears the same name as the organization that created it, updates users on river conditions, the location of the city’s 11 fixed-crest navigation dams, reservoir levels and other phenomena that could affect a boater’s safety. It also provides navigation charts and allows users to access USACE Pittsburgh social media, press releases and contact information.
The app is available for download on Google Play and Apple and is free of charge.
The creation of the app is part of the Corps’ renewed focus on recreational boater safety after two women died when their kayaks were swept over Corps' Dashields Locks and Dam in May 2017. Several other accidents occured last year — Boaters and Waterways Conservation Officers reported 69 recreational boating accidents across Pennsylvania in 2017, resulting in 51 injuries requiring medical treatment and 15 fatalities.
According to the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, the Corps is stepping up its recreational boater education programs and plans on installing more buoys and warning signs around several lock and dam locations. The Corps is also posting signs at all 23 Corps locks and dams in the region reminding boaters handling ropes in the lock chambers to wear life jackets.
The latest updates on the conditions of Pittsburgh waters can also be found on USACE social media.
