Sea Tow Ft. Lauderdale offers free radio check
FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. — Sea Tow Ft. Lauderdale is now providing a free automated marine radio check system on VHF marine channel 27, according to a release from Sea Tow.
According to the company, many boaters request radio checks on VHF channel 16, which is the hailing and distress frequency monitored by the Coast Guard and Sea Tow. Radio checks on channel 16 present a safety issue and are a violation of the Communications Act.
“Often, distress calls to the Coast Guard are interrupted by boaters requesting radio checks,” Sea Tow said in the release. “Imagine a boater who is having a medical emergency or sinking, then tries to use his radio to call for help but can’t get through due to boaters doing radio checks on channel 16.”
Sea Tow Ft. Lauderdale, through its partnership with MariTel, decided to institute the free service to the boating public in the Broward County area. To conduct an automated radio check, boaters can turn a VHF marine radio to channel 27, key the microphone and ask for a radio check. The records the radio check and then replays the transmission back, allowing boaters to hear how well their radios are working.
The service has been up and running in Broward County since June 4. Within the first three days, Sea Tow said the service was used 1,765 times.
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