Don’t forget your life jacket on the Big Sioux River – it could cost you

There’s something that many people floating down the Big Sioux River in Sioux Falls don’t think about.

Canoeing, kayaking, tubing, paddle boarding, rafting – they all have one thing in common.

You must wear or have on board a life jacket.

It’s common knowledge that you need a life jacket if you’re boating around lakes Madison or Brandt on a summer weekend.

But many people don’t realize the same rules apply to the Big Sioux.

It’s an oversight that could cost you $122.50 for a ticket from South Dakota Game, Fish & Parks.

And yes, conservation officers do write tickets in the city.

For good reason.

“To save their life,” said Joe Keeton, a law enforcement specialist for Game, Fish & Parks.

Floating the Big Sioux is a relatively safe activity. People may not think they need a life jacket because the river isn’t that deep or because they’re on a paddle board, but the risk is there.

The river is always moving, swirling forward, creating deeper points than would first appear. Canoes and kayaks can tip over. And there are rocks and logs just below the surface.

“You just don’t know how your body is going to react,” said Keeton. “The only way to guarantee that you don’t drown is to have a life jacket.”

One of the most dangerous hazards is a “strainer.”

A strainer is created by an obstruction such as a tree, root system or fencing. On the Big Sioux, that’s usually downed trees or broken-off branches hanging into the water.

The water flows through,but the branches stop the boat. Meanwhile, the flow continues, which can push the boat or person beneath the surface, tangled in the branches.

“I learned that the hard way,” Keeton said. “One day, I was working and saw a minnow bucket. I pulled the boat over to try and get it, and it just sucked my work boat right into it. That stuff happens fast.”

The number of tickets issued statewide for no life jacket was down last year to 92. That probably was because early in the COVID pandemic, conservation officers were still figuring out how to safely engage with people. Game, Fish & Parks typically writes around 150 citations a year.

According to law, you must have a life jacket or certified floatation device either on your body or with you on the boat. And that’s one jacket per person.

“We’re not fun haters,” Keeton said.

Conservation officers have been on search-and-recovery crews, looking for the bodies of people who have drowned in the state’s lakes and rivers. Going back to shore after searching all day and talking to loved ones makes you a life jacket proponent, Keeton said.

“We take the life jacket stuff pretty seriously because we have seen that pain in the eyes of the families. If this kid would have just been wearing a life jacket, we wouldn’t be here.”

State law

Here’s the portion of state law that governs life jackets.

Life preservers are required on boats operated on the public waters, as follows:

(1)  All boats less than 16 feet long must have on board one Coast Guard-approved wearable personal flotation device for each person;

(2)  All boats, other than canoes and kayaks, 16 feet long or more must have on board one Coast Guard-approved wearable personal flotation device for each person and one Coast Guard-approved throwable device; and

(3)  All boats towing persons on water skis, aquaplanes, knee boards, float tubes, air chairs or similar devices must have on board a Coast Guard-approved wearable personal floatation device for each person being towed, except if the person being towed has a wearable Coast Guard-approved personal flotation device in the person’s possession.

All flotation devices required by this section must be in serviceable condition, of an appropriate size for the persons for whom they are intended and readily accessible by those persons.