Many people will likely head to the water to cool off this weekend, as triple-digit temperatures are expected.
But it’s important to remember safety near bodies of water.
A person was thrown from his jet ski on Monday at Stampede Reservoir in Sierra County. Deputies there say if he wasn't wearing his life jacket, he easily could have died.
"Life jackets are the number one way to be safe out on the water, especially if you're on any type of watercraft,” says Ashley Zeme, Boating Education Coordinator, Nevada Department of Wildlife.
If you get to the water and forget a life jacket - or don’t have the money for one - NDOW has some available to loan in certain places.
“We have loaner stations at a lot of our popular waters,” Zeme says. “So, there's really not an excuse not to wear a life jacket."
NDOW has life jacket loaner stations at Wingfield Park and Crissie Caughlin Park in Reno. The agency has two up at Lake Tahoe, at the Sand Harbor and Cave Rock boat launches. There are also ones at Lahontan Reservoir and Topaz Lake in Lyon County, and South Fork State Recreation Area in Elko County.
“We ask people to take them, use them for the day, have a safe, fun day out on the water and then return them,” Zeme says. “That's the goal, but sometimes they don't always end up coming back. But you know what? As long as we know people are out there with life jackets, that makes us happy."
Emily Campbell grabbed two life jackets for her kids at Wingfield Park for their Wednesday morning visit to the Truckee River.
“We have a rule that my kids aren't allowed to go touch the water unless there's an adult with them,” she says. “We always like to have them in life jackets, especially on the river, because it's unpredictable and can be really strong."
On top of wearing a life jacket, officials recommend footwear that will stay securely on your feet to protect against sharp rocks and broken glass.
"A lot of times people that raft will pop or they'll get washed away from their raft, and the river bottom is full of rocks and sticks and broken glass and all kinds of hazards that tear people's feet up and then we may have to come in and rescue them because they just can't walk with their feet too torn up,” says Jonathan Bernard, a member of the Reno Fire Department’s Water Entry Team.
The Truckee is beautiful, but its current can speed up in the blink of an eye, leading to people getting stuck in the water.
“This year, our water flows are quite a bit lower than normal, which has kind of led us to have a little bit slower than normal year for calls for our water entry team,” Bernard says. “However, we still run 60 to 100 calls a year.”
Bernard says a lot of those calls involve someone getting drunk, so save the alcohol for when you're finished enjoying the water.
"It just leads to bad choices and people getting separated and lost. And then we have to get involved and do a search and rescue on people quite a bit,” Bernard says.
Reno Fire says if you fall in, get in a defensive swimming position with your feet downstream and paddle with your arms upstream to shore.
