Thieves could sink efforts to protect swimmers at local beaches.
About 50 lifejackets have been swiped from five stations that loan vests to swimmers.
One station, a wooden kiosk at Twin Lakes County Park, was cleaned out of jackets during the summer, according to Capt. Christian Davis of Fire District 14.
“If we can’t keep the cabinets stocked, there’s no point to keep this up and running,” said Kim Schroeder, president of the SAFE KIDS Coalition.
The group started the lifejacket program four years ago.
Volunteers built cabinets at five county swimming holes, including Kayak Park, Lake Stevens, Silver Lake, Martha Lake and Twin Lakes.
“We really focused on areas where kids swim and there aren’t any life guards on duty,” Schroeder said.
Swimmers, from infants to adults, can borrow jackets from the stations at no charge. The cabinets are generally open from Memorial Day until the beginning of October.
The jackets, obtained from a state program through the Snohomish County Sheriff’s Office, are being used.
They aren’t being returned.
Before the start of the summer, the coalition replaced jackets that weren’t returned last year, said Davis, chairman of the program for SAFE KIDS.
The jackets have been flying off the shelves again this summer, especially at Twin Lakes.
“We know these jackets can save lives,” he said. “We want to make them available to people who might not be able to afford them.”
A teen drowned at Twin Lakes last month. The man was not wearing one of the lifejackets available in the kiosk, Davis said.
The coalition originally bought the vests through donations and sponsors. It can’t afford anymore, Schroeder said.
“I don’t know if we could go back to those people and ask for more money,” she said.
Not all the jackets are intentionally stolen, coalition members said.
Boaters who grab one or two might forget to return them when they pull their boats out of the water.
Others are obviously stolen.
A coalition member spotted two of the jackets being used at the waterslides at Birch Bay in Whatcom County.
“We’re glad they’re being used but we need them to be returned. We’ll have to close down the program if we don’t have enough lifejackets,” Schroeder said.
Reporter Diana Hefley: 425-339-3463 or hefley@heraldnet.com.
Talk to us
> Give us your news tips.
> Send us a letter to the editor.
> More Herald contact information.
