The Ministry of Transport and Sustainable Mobility develops a new summer safety campaign in recreational boating to try to eradicate boating myths that are causing unwanted accidents among users of recreational boating and other recreational maritime activities.
The campaign, presented today in Santander at an event chaired by the Secretary General of Air and Maritime Transport, Benito Núñez, has as its motto ‘Myths that make waters. Turn a deaf ear to the songs of siren and listen to the law of the sea’ and it is promoted by the General Directorate of the Merchant Marine and Maritime Rescue.
The video of the campaign reveals habits acquired by navigators that, without being aware, can put them at serious risk. Among these habits are the consumption of alcohol, the lack of maintenance of security elements, such as vests and lifeguards; the lack of surveillance of minors on the deck or lack of sufficient fuel for the whole crossing, among others.
In short, the objective is to prevent emergencies and ensure that the days of enjoyment at sea on board a boat or a jet ski during the summer are carried out without shocks while being aware of compliance with safety regulations. ‘We must be aware that we ourselves are primarily responsible for our safety and this depends on us complying with the rules established before and during the crossing’, said the director general of the Merchant Navy, Ana Núñez, during the presentation of the video of the campaign.
The event was also attended by the head of the Maritime Police Headquarters of the Civil Guard, General Javier Moscoso; the director of Maritime Rescue, José Luis García Lena; the legal and institutional advisor of ANEN, Carlos Sanlorenzo Ferri and the head of the Sailing Route, Federico Fernández Trapa.
Social media campaign broadcast
The campaign will be disseminated through the social networks of the Ministry of Transport and Sustainable Mobility (@transportesgob) and Salvamento Marítimo (@salvamentogob). To identify it, a new hashtag has been set up: #LaLeyDelMar, which adds to those used in previous campaigns, such as #Salvate, #SecurityNautica or #Ries0.
The web pages of the Ministry and Maritime Rescue will also be a medium for dissemination and consultation, since users can download one Guide with recreational nautical recommendations, an information leaflet and one infographic With the ‘must-haves’ when navigating, in Spanish and English.
In addition, the heads of Maritime Captaincies and Maritime Rescue Centers scattered along the Spanish coast will carry out dissemination events to raise awareness about compliance with the rules.
Global figures in recreational boating emergencies
Almost half of the emergencies that occur at sea in the summer season (from June 15 to September 15) are carried out by a recreational boat and other recreational maritime activities. Maritime Captaincies and Maritime Rescue Centers handled 1,466 such emergencies with more than 3,600 people involved last summer. The causes of emergencies in recreational boats are repeated year after year: structural or mechanical failure (77%), stranded or embarking (7%), and another 16% for multiple causes such as fires, lack of news, sinking or waterways, among others.
In addition, during the control and inspection campaign of sports and recreational boats and nautical motorcycles carried out by the Maritime Police Headquarters of the Civil Guard during the summer period, 4,380 inspections were carried out on sports and recreational boats, proposing 886 for punishment. In relation to nautical motorcycles, during the campaign of the year 2024 2,522 inspections were carried out, proposing for sanction 974. The majority are related to the lack of insurance or the qualification for the use of the boats.
On the other hand, 84% of the sanctioning files processed by the Maritime Captaincies of the General Directorate of the Merchant Navy for serious infringement during the year 2024 affected users of recreational boats (62%) and jet skis (22%). The amount of the sanctions amounts to almost 3 million euros.
More information: act in streaming