From the blogs: Drinking and boat operation

Drinking alcohol while operating a boat is one way to find trouble in Minnesota, particularly beginning Friday, when local, state and federal enforcement agencies team up to highlight the problem. Dubbed Operation Dry Water, the effort will continue through Sunday, in a run-up to July 4th — a holiday, statistics show, when boating accidents involving alcohol often spike. Since 2009, the percentage of boating fatalities involving alcohol has fallen from 19 percent to 17 percent. Still, boating while intoxicated can be deadly: In 2011, alcohol was a contributing factor in 8 percent of boating accidents overall, but figured in 17 percent of watercraft fatalities