OPERATION DRY WATER In Effect

RICHMOND

Virginia conservation police officers will be patrolling the state's waterways for boaters under the influence.

Called Operation Dry Water, the initiative begins today and continues through the weekend.

The Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries said conservation officers will be looking for boat operators with a blood-alcohol concentration of .08 or higher. That's the legal limit in Virginia.

In the past five years, Virginia has had an average of 128 recreational boating incidents each year. An average of 17 of those each year have been alcohol-related.

The Virginia crackdown is part of a national safe-boating initiative.

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