DELAWARE WATER GAP, Pa. — "Fitted" and "fastened" are two words park officials with the Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area want you to remember if you plan to get on the water this holiday weekend.
"Wearing that life jacket is the number one most important thing that any of us can do to make sure that we and our families are safe and that we go home at the end of the day," said Kathleen Sandt, public affairs specialist for the National Park Service.
Sandt says 101 people have drowned in the recreation area since the 1970s.
"Out of the people those 101 people, not one of them was wearing a properly fitted and fastened life jacket at the time of their death," Sandt says.
In addition to wearing a properly fitted and fastened life jacket, she says you should also know what body of water you are recreating on, like the Delaware River.
"It is a river, and below that surface, there is a strong current," said Sandt. "It is moving at a very fast pace, and if you get into that current, it's very easy, even if you're a strong swimmer, to get caught up in it and get carried away."
Sandt says having a life jacket on if you fall in could determine if you make it home or not.
"If you should get caught in the current, just relax. Don't panic. You're wearing your life jacket; you can just float downstream. You can make your way to the shore, a little bit further downstream," Sandt says. "So that you don't have to fight the current, and then you might have to do a little bit of a walk back up along the shoreline, but at least you'll be out of the water safety."
Ahead of the long holiday weekend, Sandt hopes everyone understands the importance of water safety.
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