BOATsmart! USA Knowledge Base

Module 06 - Other Water Activities Emergency Preparation

How to Respond If Your Personal Watercraft has Run Aground

STEP 1: Visually and/or verbally confirm that all of your passengers are accounted for.

STEP 2: If possible, attempt to push or pull the personal watercraft (PWC) off the obstruction. Then pull the PWC into deeper water, re-board the PWC, re-connect the safety lanyard and drive away from the obstruction.

STEP 3: If the PWC cannot be manually dislodged from the obstruction, do not use the engine. Instead, signal your need for help using a distress signal.

STEP 4: If appropriate and safe to do so, swim for shore and seek assistance immediately.

If your boat runs aground, your first reaction might be to rev the engine in reverse to try to dislodge your boat from the obstruction. Don’t do this—operating your boat in reverse while stuck on an object could damage your boat’s rudder or propeller. You would also risk damaging your engine’s cooling system if sand or mud was sucked into it.