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If you will be diving from a charter boat, dive flag laws will be of little concern to you. However, if you plan to do any shore diving or if you bring your own boat to dive from, you will indeed need to be aware of the statutes concerning the use of a flag. These laws are designed for the safety of both divers and boaters.
This is a reprint of Florida State Statute 861.065 "Divers; definitions;diver-down flag required; obstruction to navigation of certain waters; penalty. ---
(1) "Diver" means any person who is wholly or partially submerged in the waters of the state and is equipped with a face mask and snorkel or underwater breathing apparatus.
(2) "Underwater breathing apparatus" shall mean any apparatus, whether self contained or connected to a distant source of air or other gas, whereby a person wholly or partially submerged in water is enabled to obtain or reuse air or any other gas or gasses for breathing without returning to the surface of the water.
(3) "Divers-down flag" shall mean that a flag is either square or rectangular, to approximately 4 units high by 5 units long, with a 1 unit diagonal stripe. The divers-down flag shall have a white diagonal stripe on a red background. The stripe shall begin at the top staff-side of the flag and extend diagonally to the opposite lower corner. The flag shall be free-flying and shall be lowered when all divers are aboard or ashore. The minimum size shall be 12 x 12 inches.
(4) All divers shall prominently display a divers down flag in the area in which the diving occurs, other than in an area customarily used for swimming only.
(5) No diver or group of divers shall display one or more divers-down flags on a river, inlet, or navigation channel, except in case of an emergency, in a manner which will unreasonably constitute a navigation hazard.
(6) Divers shall make reasonable efforts to stay within 100 feet of the diver-down flag on rivers, inlets, and navigation channels
(7) Any willful violation of this section shall be a misdemeanor of the second degree. |
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