Dive Flag laws for Florida

this page was last updated on 6-13-01.

Upcoming changes to dive Flag Regs- Florida in Bold type

source: http://floridaconservation.org/law/boatsafe/sb386.html

Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission Boating Legislation, 2000 Chapter 2000-386

The 2000 Florida Legislature passed a measure that impacts boaters and boating safety issues. Some of the impacts are significant, others were of a technical nature with little or no impact on the public. Below is a section-by-section summary of the bill's more significant impacts.

Section 6. Effective 10/1/2000

Amends s. 327.33, F.S.

Adds "buzzing" a dive flag (violating s. 327.331(6), F.S.) to the description of reckless operation. Removes dive flag provisions from the careless operation subsection.

Section 7. Effective 10/1/2000

Renumbers s. 861.065, F.S., as s. 327.331, F.S., and amends it:

Increases the size of divers flags displayed on vessels from 12"x12" to 20"x24" and requires a stiffener to keep the flag unfurled. Dive flags on vessels must be displayed so that the flag's visibility is not obstructed. Vessel operators must make reasonable effort to maintain a distance of 100 feet from any divers-down flag while on a river, inlet, or navigation channel; divers must make a reasonable effort to stay within 100 feet of the divers-down flag on rivers, inlets, or navigation channels (NOT A CHANGE).

Divers must make a reasonable effort to stay within 300 feet of the divers-down flag on all waters other than rivers, inlets, or navigation channels; vessel operators must make a reasonable effort to maintain a distance of 300 feet on these waters.

Vessels may approach within 100 feet or 300 feet of a divers-down flag only at idle speed; approaching at higher speed is reckless operation.

Dive flag violations continue to be 2nd degree misdemeanors for one year.

Section 23. Effective 10/1/2001 Amends s. 327.73, F.S., to provide that divers-down flag violations are noncriminal violations subject to a $50 civil penalty.

Section 24. Effective 10/1/2001 Amends s. 327.731, F.S., to add divers-down flag violations to the list of infractions (2 convictions within 12 months) that trigger the violator education requirement. (Note - from 10/1/2000 until 9/30/2001, any ONE dive flag violation will trigger the violator education requirement because it is a chapter 327 misdemeanor.)

Moves the diver flag section (861.065) to the boating safety section (327.).

Decriminalizes the dive flag section.

Note, you can swim off your boat with a mask and not use a flag if you _remove_ the snorkel and use mask only or use no mask at all (quirk in the law that makes no sense)

Here in the Florida Keys we often fly both flags while divers are in the water, the red flag with the diagonal white stripe is recognised as A legal flag for _State Waters_ . The Blue and White Alpha Flag is recognised as _THE_ legal flag for _international Waters_ (You may face an increased proportion of liability if an accident occurred in Int'l water and you flew only a red/white-diag.stripe) As for the Colregs: flying the Alpha Flag should alert other vessel operators of your status as a RAM vessel.

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The Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary (FKNMS): Sanctuary wide regulations (approximately 2800 square miles) Regs on topic for this discussion

(Capitals added for emphasis)

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THE FOLLOWING ACTIVITIES ARE PROHIBITED SANCTUARY-WIDE

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Operating a vessel at MORE THAN IDLE SPEED within 100 YARDS of residential shorelines, STATIONARY VESSELS, and Navigational Aids.

NOTE:(FKNMS) stationary vessel (dive flag OR NOT)_ idle speed within 100 yards._

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Operating a vessel at MORE than IDLE SPEED within 100 FEET** of a 'divers down" flag

** Changing to 300 feet

Note:(FKNMS) some dive flags are attached to buoys that divers tow attached by a line to themselves to explore areas away from the dive vessel. (100 feet applies***) *** Changing to 300 feet

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But still there are accidents. In one fatality (the school teacher- upper keys) the GPS' of _each_ of the vessels involved had the data recovered and helped identify if the diver was at fault for being to far from his flag or if the vessel that killed him encroached on his "protected" area .

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Regardless of the Rules USE COMMON SENSE, be courteous, don't _push the limits_ DO NOT be on plane 101 feet away from a dive Flag or 301 feet from a stationary vessel !

COMMON SENSE:

You should at least DOUBLE OR TRIPLE the limits, be cautious: (new law does triple distance)

The OVERWHELMING MAJORITY of the divers you are likely to encounter are BEGINNERS. They are UNLIKELY to stay in the boundaries, THEY DO NOT HAVE THE SKILL it takes to navigate underwater and often surface just to find out their position relative to their vessel, if they use to much air to complete a standard "box" course they can pop up anywhere. Often they do not understand how hard it is to make progress against a current and will have drifted down current from their vessel.