Lake Gaston Water Safety Council 2019 Accomplishments
• Continued to update the LGWSC website and Facebook throughout the year to ensure timely and informative content was available to boaters. During the course of the year we had over 2,000 visitors from as far away as California inquiring about launch sites, where to borrow child life vests, etc.
• Due to the retirement of our webmaster, a new web platform is now used which permits real time updates by authorized users.
• LGWSC volunteers attended the Water Safety Information trailer at 6 events around the lake. Questions were answered about water safety for an estimated 570 folks. Of this number, 60 were middle school students in support of the LGA sponsored Lakeside Learning Days.
• We welcomed students at 6 sessions of the USCG Auxiliary Boat Safety class.
• Council members participated and distributed boat safety awareness information at the opening of National Safe Boating week.
• Provided at no charge 10 throwable and 10 fire extinguishers to the Coast Guard Auxiliary for distribution to the USCG when they conducted boat safety inspections during the holiday periods. In lieu of an expensive ticket, the USCG staff provided mandatory safety equipment donated by the Lake Gaston Water Safety Council.
• Distributed over 650 water safety packets to marinas and real estate offices located around the lake.
• Promoted awareness of the Children's Life Jacket Loaner Program at nine (9) locations around the Lake to ensure visitors had proper safety equipment available.
• We developed a new WSC awareness lawn sign and posted at over 40 strategic locations arounds the lake.
• Authored 6 water safety related articles for inclusion in the LGA semi-monthly Bulletin.
• We cosponsored with the Lake Gaston Gazette Observer our first youth coloring book contest. Youth were given an opportunity to create a poster with a water safety theme. Firs, second and third place finishers along with honorable mention were awarded pries donated bu business members.
• Identified focal points for reporting missing, off station and malfunctioning danger and navigation buoys:
◦ Mile Markers - (252) 535-6161 Ext. 4
◦ Danger and Navigation Buoys - (919) 707-0150 (NC) /
(434) 848-3107 (VA - Brunswick County) / (434)
738-6191 (VA - Mecklenburg County)
• Made available signs for personal watercraft responsibility
awareness and to promote use of life vests.
• Provided contact numbers to report unsafe boating incidents in
the form of laminated cards and signs.