3-27-13 —     U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Nashville District representatives recently presented officers from the Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources with the Great Lakes and Ohio Division 2012 Water Safety Award.

    Capt. Allen Stansbury, a project officer at Wolf Creek and Lake Cumberland, made the presentation and told the group that the award is given to them for their outstanding efforts towards promoting water safety on Lake Cumberland.

    The ceremony was held on Wednesday, March 13 at Conley Bottom Resort.

    "You played a critical role in Lake Cumberland's zero water fatalities in 2012, and the Nashville District is grateful for your collaboration with our rangers," said Stansbury.

    District Commander, Capt. Tim Catron accepted the award for the group and thanked everyone for their support, commitment, contributions and determination to provide public boating safety on Lake Cumberland.

    "We appreciate this award very much and look to continue our relationship with the Corps," said Catron.

    Catron and his staff are the driving force behind one of the largest and most successful water safety campaigns in Kentucky.  He said officers often spend months planning and deciding options and ways of making boating safer around Lake Cumberland.

    "The Kentucky Fish and Wildlife officers are a major reason for our success and safe boating record last year," said Marshall Jennings, a park ranger at the Lake Cumberland Resource Office.

    Jennings said park rangers here and Kentucky Fish and Wildlife Resource officers work well together and collaborate before and throughout the recreation season to formulate and carry out a strategic plan to promote public safety while on and around the water.

    Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife Officer Jerrod Alley said he enjoys working closely with Corps rangers all the time and the collaboration makes it safer for the public in the case of an incident.

    "Whether working on civic programs to help educate the public, handing out safety brochures, patrolling, or conducting boat inspections, we are out here supporting each other for the mission of promoting boating safety," said Alley.

    Throughout 2012, the Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife resource officers assigned to Lake Cumberland played a vital role in public and recreational water safety.

    Officers made 98 boating under the influence arrests, logged over 3,500 boating enforcement hours and inspected 5,666 vessels.

    In addition to Lake Cumberland being a vacation destination for more than 300,000 people during each of the three summer holidays, it hosted several major public boating events that included:

    •  The Lake Cumberland Annual Raft-up event that collaborates with the Lake Cumberland Association

    • The lake hosts two to three Poker runs each summer that Kentucky Fish and Wildlife Officers are closely involved with.  These events attract large numbers of both participants and spectators.

    • The officers also actively participated in a national effort called "Operation Dry Water' which is devoted to reducing boating under the influence and general alcohol use while boating on the water.

    Lake Cumberland, the largest man-made impoundment east of the Mississippi, hosts approximately four million visitors each year, with much of these visits taking place during the summer boating season.  Corps Park Rangers and Kentucky Wildlife Resource Officers spend countless hours promoting and enforcing water and boating safety on a 50,000 acre lake encompassed by 1200 miles of shoreline impoundment.

    "I just want you to know how important you are to us," said Lake Cumberland Resource  Manager Brett Call, "Our rangers often speak about you with the highest respect and we appreciate your service to them and our Lake Cumberland community."

    KDFW that received the award included: Capt. Tim Catron, Lt. Stuart Bryant, Sgt. Wayne Glover, Officer Wayne Wilson, Officer Bryan Dolan, Sgt. Tom Land, Officer Chris King, Officer Jerrod Alley, Officer Travis Neal, Officer Jason Estes, Officer Chris Meadows, Officer Rich Waite, Sgt. Ray Lawson and Sgt. Jason Bolton.