DES MOINES, Iowa — The Iowa Department of Natural Resources has important safety tips for Iowans looking to spend time on Iowa’s waterways.

Todd Robertson, a river programs water trails coordinator for the Iowa DNR, said that the number one thing Iowans need when on the river is a life jacket.

“It goes down to the very basic number one, which is wearing the life jacket, the life jacket’s made for a reason. It does a certain thing for you, and that is it keeps your head above water. It keeps you buoyant, because if you dump your boat in a river with all the current and you don’t have your life jacket on, it is so easy to get pulled down underneath the water,” Robertson said.

The DNR also recommends that Iowans avoid going on the river after heavy rain.

“You just can’t go start paddling on a river the day after a super heavy rain. And the reason for that is because all the debris washes in from the banks and you get wood piled on top of wood. And we call those strainers and those are really deadly,” Robertson said.

Robertson said that strainers can flip boats and trap paddlers.

“So you just have a big mess of wood. The only problem with that is it’s like a spaghetti strainer. The water is going through the strainer and it’s sucking the water through. But if you get your boat and your body up against that, you can slip and you can actually get sucked underneath that. And if that happens, that’s real bad news,” Robertson said.

To learn more about river safety, visit the Iowa DNR’s website.

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