EDITOR’S NOTE: The app is labeled as “United States Coast Guard.” For more information and to download the Coast Guard’s boating safety app, go to http://www.uscg.mil/mobile/
PORT ANGELES — The Coast Guard has released its first-ever boating safety app for mobile phones.
The free app is available on Apple App Store and Google Play store.
Features include state boating information, a safety equipment checklist, free boating safety check requests, navigation rules, float plans and calling features to report pollution or suspicious activity.
When location services are enabled, users can receive the latest weather reports from the closest National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration weather buoys as well as report the location of a hazard on the water.
The app also features an emergency-assistance button that will call the closest Coast Guard command center, again if location services are enabled.
“The release of this mobile application is a step forward for the Coast Guard as we embrace new technologies,” said Capt. Joe Raymond, commander of Coast Guard Sector Puget Sound in Seattle.
“The intention is to make the information and resources more accessible to the boating public.”
The app is self-contained, so personal information is stored on the phone and not sent to the Coast Guard unless the user chooses.
The Coast Guard does not track a user’s location, Raymond said, and the app won’t track when it’s not in use.
The app is not meant to replace a boater’s marine VHF radio, which the Coast Guard strongly recommends all boaters have aboard their vessels, Raymond said.
