Kevin Jost, a 50-year seasonal resident of Old Forge, addressed the Town of Webb Board at their monthly meeting on Tuesday, August 13 regarding his concerns for water safety on the Fulton Chain.

Jost spoke as a concerned citizen and in response to a boating collision on First Lake near his dock that resulted in injuries to Old Forge residents Doc and Judy Foley on Saturday, July 27th.

The boating incident prompted Jost to question the state of current patrol coverage for the Fulton Chain of Lakes.

As a result, he and his wife Candy hosted an informal meeting on August 2 of local and county law enforcement, state officials, town elected officials, Fulton Chain of Lakes Association members, Rivett’s Marine owners and concerned community citizens.

Jost reported  common concerns to the Board that resulted from the meeting as well as from conversations with many who he said reached out to voice their views of the status of the local water safety environment.

The concerns included: increased patrolling and enforcement; water safety education; navigation markers assessment and improvement; address police officer recruitment, retention and flexibility; and legislation related to hiring of law enforcement personnel, local boating laws and penalties for boating while intoxicated.

In response to the incident, Rivett’s owners Chris and Diane Gaige have added a statement to the maps they distribute with each boat rental stressing sobriety while navigating a boat.

At the board meeting, Jost strongly recommended actions by the board requesting that it lead and conduct a comprehensive review of these findings and others, quickly. He also asked the board to develop a water safety improvement agenda and implement it aggressively.

“We must put the public safety first on our waters. Let’s not squander this wake up call because this was a wake up call that we need to take seriously,” he said.

Doug Gentile, a neighbor of Jost who also attended the meeting, noted that the boating incident with the Foley’s was a rare event.

“However, what is not rare is the behavior that led up to the event,” Gentile said.

Bob McCoy of Big Moose Lake agreed that safety programs are good, but wondered how much the town board can do.

Town Board member Mary Brophy-Moore said there are things that the board can do.

“When we invite people to come to the Adirondacks we want to make sure we can provide them with a fun experience, but also a safe one. If we don’t have adequate protection we do need to address that,” she said.

Tom McCabe, a longtime member of the Fulton Chain of Lakes Association, said that he, along with other organization members, have seen the size of boats, speed, noise and recklessness grow exponentially over the years.

He noted that the Towns of Webb and Inlet have worked tremendously well with the association over the years to keep the waters clean, and looks forward to working with them to keep them safe as well.

Joel Marmelstein, a Fourth Lake resident and friend of Judy and Doc Foley, gave  impassioned remarks and asked that the stiffest charges possible be filed against violators.

Following the incident Herkimer County Sheriff Farber, whose office is responsible for patrolling the Fulton Chain, adjusted patrol times to better fit the highest times for boat traffic.

Patrol times now run from noon to 7:30 p.m. instead of law enforcement boats coming off the lakes at 5 p.m.

Sheriff Farber said his department likes to have two boats on the water on Friday, Saturday and Sunday.

There are no patrols on Mondays. Though Farber said the goal is to have patrol boats on the lake Tuesday through Sunday, he admits that it might not always be the case.

“Two boats on the water every day would be an ideal situation. I just don’t have the people to do that. It’s a budget issue,” he said.

Farber added that they are patrolling more this year than last year when they lost two part-time officers. The Sheriff’s office currently has one part-time officer in the Town of Webb who is fully navigation-trained.

Farber acknowledged the difficulties in retaining staff.

“The process to hire staff and get them fully trained in policing and navigation can take six months up to a year,” he said.

Often he loses staff because of the inability to offer competitive salaries, he added.

Farber is currently utilizing three full time employees from the County office who share their time covering shifts on the Fulton Chain. Two of them are fully navigation-trained, according to Farber.

“Obviously the more you are on the water, the more visible you are. But it’s a large body of water,” he said.

“Ultimately, we are about protection, providing safety.”

Because of the vast nature of the Fulton Chain of Lakes, Farber advises that anyone who witnesses reckless boat activity should dial 911.