Safety First Marine Patrol Cruises The Valley’s Waterways Ensuring Boaters’ Safety And Fun

At the south end of Liberty Lake, three teenagers were enjoying a late afternoon outing under the scorching summer sun.

A 16-year-old boy wearing a black baseball cap towed his cousin on water skis behind the family boat.

“He’s not wearing a life jacket,” said Jim Mandel, an Eastern Washington University student who is earning college credit as an intern with the Spokane County Sheriff’s Department. Today, he is flanking Marine Patrol Deputy Tom Mattern.

The boy circled the Sheriff’s Department boat and the 18-year-old skier fell.

“You don’t think so?” Mattern said. “Let’s go see.”

Mattern, a six-year veteran of the Sheriff’s Department Marine Patrol Unit, gunned the outboard engine. Blue light flashing, the 19-foot Hewes Craft glided smoothly across the bumpy water.

A girl dressed in a blue swimsuit and cut-off jeans waved a blue and yellow plastic oar to signal the fallen skier. The skier was wearing a life jacket, but the boat’s registration had expired.

“I just know (the registration sticker is) not green so it’s not current,” Mattern said.

Stopping boaters for registration violations is just an excuse for Mattern to do boat safety inspections. Other than boaters speeding through no-wake zones, registration violations are the easiest to spot.

Between Mattern and his partner, Tom Henderson, a khaki clad deputy patrols the two Spokane Valley lakes and the Spokane River seven days a week.

Of all the county lakes, Liberty and Newman in the Valley get the most attention from the Marine Patrol.

Though boat traffic on the two lakes is about the same, more complaints come out of Liberty Lake, Mattern said. He attributed the difference to the larger number of houses with docks that surround Liberty.

Mattern said Liberty Lake is notorious for boats registered in Idaho.

The large number of Idaho boats may be partly attributed to an influx of boaters from Idaho’s Lake Coeur d’Alene, but Mattern said many are registered to lakeside residents.

“It’s really hard to convince me you do most of your boating on Idaho lakes when you live on Liberty Lake and have a boat launch,” the deputy said.

The teenager’s boat was no exception.

Lack of current Washington state registration gave Mattern the opportunity for another safety inspection.

The process is simple. Mattern asks and the boater is required to produce.

The teens produced an array of life jackets and a fire extinguisher.

All but one of the life jackets were unusable or too small for the trio. The fire extinguisher needed recharging.

The oar the 17-year-old girl was waving hardly doubled for the red flag required to alert other boaters of a downed skier.

Finally, the boat had no horn and its occupants carried no whistle.

Together, the violations could have added up to fines totaling more than $400, but Mattern cited the driver only for the $190 registration violation.

A stern warning was the penalty for the other infractions.

“Make sure you get that taken care of before you go back onto the water,” Mattern instructed. “When I see you on the lake again, I will stop you and check.”

Mattern backed the teal and silver boat away from the dock and began to cruise around the lake again.

“To me this is half of the job: to go around and let people know you are here,” Mattern said.

“People like to see us because it helps to ensure their safety and fun.”

The Marine Patrol’s two deputies and seven reservists navigate the Valley waterways on four boats and four jet skis.

Its members are responsible for all of the search and rescue efforts whether on land or water, as well as, patroling the waterways.

“If I didn’t love the water, I’d hate the job,” Mattern said. “Everybody says it’s a great and wonderful job until I say, ‘Well, why don’t you come along with me on my next drowning.”’

Alcohol and reckless jet skiers are the other problems deputies face on the Valley lakes.

Jet skiers are the biggest headache for the Marine Patrol, Matter said.

The quick, highly mobile personal watercrafts dart in and out among boaters and fishermen, competing with one another to slam their jet ski through the biggest waves.

“Jet skiers get tunnel vision and only think about the fun they’re having,” Mattern said.

Though jet skiers are the gist of most complaints, catching them in the act has proved tough for Mattern.

The Valley lakes offer only one boat launch, so surprising the violators not an option.

“It’s like putting up a sign saying the cops are here so don’t do it,” Mattern said. “The minute I’m seen, the halo goes up.”

When deputies do catch a jet skier, the Marine Patrol’s jet skis come in handy. They allow deputies to stop looking down at the skiers when explaining the rules of the water.

“Now you’re looking eye to eye with them,” Mattern said.

And, though deputies “do not recreate” on duty, it doesn’t hurt that the deputy is a little closer to the water.

“The job combines my love of water and my chosen vocation,” Mattern said. “I have completed two dreams.”

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