Boating enforcement increases over holiday weekend

Boating enforcement increases over the Fourth of July holiday weekend as North Dakota Game and Fish Department prepares stepped-up patrols under Operation Dry Water. The agency said it will add enforcement and water patrols because boating traffic rises during the holiday period. Officers will participate alongside other law enforcement groups, partnering with the National Association of State Boating Law Administrators and the U.S. Coast Guard. Officials emphasized that alcohol remains the leading factor in recreational boating deaths, and that impaired vessel operators raise the risk of incidents, injuries and fatalities even for passengers. In North Dakota, operating with a blood alcohol concentration of .08% or higher is illegal. Separately, Get Kids Outdoors plans a July 9 fishing event at Maple Lake, Minnesota, with check-in at Crookston High School by 8:15 a.m.