Dave wrote:
On 17 Apr 2006 08:42:54 -0700, "
said:


I am very
involved in the US effort to require that all exposed propellers on
boats are guarded.


What is the annual rate of deaths and serious injury in the US from
unguarded propellers on sailing craft?
The overall rate is about 2-5 fatalities a year. It seems like many
of them are related to houseboat rentals, and propeller guards may
make sense in that area. Since the stat includes "engine strikes"
along with "prop strikes" its hard to say how many lives would
actually be saved if all outboards had guards.

Given the large number of risks we face every day, I have trouble
supporting "blanket" safety procedures, such as prop guards on all
boat. Until we're ready to ban alcohol, and enforce speed limits, we
shouldn't penalize all boaters for a risk that doesn't quite exist.