56 Proceedings | Vol. 83, No. 1 monoxide (CO) poisoning can happen outdoors. Several high-profile deaths, originally suspected drownings, were ultimately linked to CO poisoning from the exhaust of houseboat generators. The waterline exhaust output caused the odorless, colorless, tasteless gas to accumulate under swim platforms and other areas where swimmers might encounter it. Building on Coast Guard accident investigations, the ABYC standards had made some significant changes in this area by the late ’90s. Beginning with isolating propulsion engines from the interior of the boat, these changes extended to a complete redesign of the way houseboat generator installation is performed. This included new products that separate the exhaust from the cooling water, with the exhaust exiting through a “dry stack” high above the top deck of the houseboat. Subsequent studies were done for towed watersports that led to a document on manufacturer testing of boats to see where CO may accumulate, as well as trying to identify an effective outdoor detector for the gas. Today’s standards include many provisions to mitigate both the generation of CO as well as provide warnings through labels and indoor detectors suitable for the marine envi- ronment. Many states have passed laws requiring the installation of the CO warning labels that ABYC builders have been applying since 2009. Electric Shock Drowning Similar to the misunderstanding of CO hazards, electric shock drowning was also not fully understood. Upon autopsy, several deaths originally suspected as drown- ings revealed there was no water in the victims’ lungs. Rescuers also gave accounts in their post-accident inter- views of “paralyzing” and “shocking” sensations while in the water. As a result, victim advocates approached the Coast Guard for assistance. Over the course of two separate grant periods, the phenomenon was identified and tested on a repeated basis. Faults and miswiring of boats and docks created a small and intense electrical field, which in nonconduc- tive freshwater is in search of a grounding element. The swimmer who encounters the field becomes the ground and, in severe cases, experiences paralysis and electro- cution. Working through a grant, the ABYC Electrical Project Technical Committee identified a device called an equip- ment leakage circuit interrupter. Acting like the ground fault breaker in a household bathroom, these devices became required on recreational vessels with alternating current in late 2011. Other mitigation strategies are also now required to reduce the possibility of stray current entering the water. In standard NFPA 303, Fire Protection Standard for Marinas and Boatyards, the National Fire Protection Association required a device to respond to advances faster than federal requirements can react. ABYC provides the ability to address new technology as it occurs, not when the regulation has had the chance to catch up. Coast Guard involvement in the standards- writing process is at the core of the standards’ relevance. With engineers from the service’s Office of Auxiliary & Boating Safety (CG-BSX) represented on every committee, boats and accessories builders know that, in lieu of a regulation, a written standard has had our federal regulators input and review. Partnership Offers Longterm Success ABYC’s relationship with the Coast Guard began with its 1954 founding, and the service’s participation and support is essential to keeping recreational boaters safe. Today that relationship is essentially unchanged. We rely on each other’s sphere of influence to ensure that manufacturers have access to the solid, well-thought-out, attainable standards that can help build a safe product. Financial backing that ABYC receives in the form of the Coast Guard’s National Nonprofit Organization Grant Program funding benefits recreational boating as a whole. Research, testing, and even reimbursing small businesses’ expenses for their participation in the stan- dards development process have been hallmarks of the grant applications over the years. Whether it’s working is a question that comes up con- tinually. A recent study by Industrial Economics looked at incidents involving boats built to ABYC standards ver- sus boats not using these standards. “This important research confirms what many have believed anecdotally, which is recreational boats that are built to voluntary standards are less likely to be in cer- tain accidents than those built to the Coast Guard’s mini- mum standards,” said Jeff Ludwig, Chief of the Coast Guard’s Recreational Boating Product Assurance Branch. A History of Working Toward Safer Boating In the last 20 years, we’ve seen some very significant causes of accident mitigated by the Coast Guard/ABYC partnership working to identify reasonable, sustainable solutions. Carbon Monoxide Poisoning Beginning in the mid-1990s, the recreational boating industry became aware of the possibility that carbon
