With six infractions given out during the month of June, as well as 72 other enforcements such as written and verbal warnings, the Lake Zoar Marine Patrol is looking to crack down on unsafe behavior on the lake.

Marine Patrol Coordinator Dan Semosky told the Lake Zoar Authority at its July 11 meeting that six infractions in a month is “something of a record.”

With the requirement starting June 1 that kayakers had to have life jackets (though it is not required to wear them), a crackdown over late May and June has “paid dividends.”

“Word got out and the majority of kayakers have life jackets,” said Semosky. “Now we have a different issue with personal water craft (PWCs) such as jet skis. We’re having a big issue with them.”

Semosky said that many people using PWCs don’t live on the lake but are bringing them in on trailers and are putting them in at local boat launches. He said many operators do not have their safe boating certificate (a driver’s license equivalent for boating that must be registered once per year) or a registration for the watercraft.

“There’s a lot of PWCs out there that are not registered,” said Semosky. “They shouldn’t be out there.”

Additionally, many PWCs are engaging in behavior that could cause an accident — there were two boat accidents during the last two weeks of May, according to the minutes of the June 7 Lake Zoar Authority meeting.

“They’re jumping wakes and other dangerous nonsense,” said Semosky.

Semosky said that the marine patrol will do spot checks on vehicles after they launch. While the marine patrol cannot issue tickets itself — Semosky himself is a retired Connecticut state trooper — the patrol works with the police departments of the four surrounding communities who can. Those communities are Newtown, Southbury, Oxford, and Monroe.

“We can’t write tickets, that’s up to the officer, but we can suggest and encourage,” said Semosky.

Semosky said the spot check idea came from a Newtown officer “who is very into boating safety.” While the marine patrol doesn’t want to “come down too heavy for minor offenses,” they will issue warnings and even infractions to “someone who has been stopped multiple times.”

However, those whose actions may be endangering children will be “immediately stopped.” For instance, any child whose feet cannot rest flat on the boards along the sides of the jet ski are too young to safely ride, “no tippy toes.” A small child riding in front of the operator is dangerous as well.

The key is for the marine patrol to stay involved and be seen out on the lake, said Semosky.

“We’re doing all we can,” said Semosky. “We’re doing more this year than ever. We can’t be everywhere, but if we’re visible, then people will think that we could be anywhere.”

Semosky also reported that Newtown Police are currently investigating a complaint of a stolen jet ski. He said that three years ago, a homeowner on Lake Zoar reported a stolen jet ski. On the weekend of July 9 of this year, the homeowner said he spotted his stolen jet ski on the lake.

“There was a large investigation, but they were having trouble identifying it as the missing jet ski,” said Semosky, who said that a trooper from Connecticut Troop A is also involved in the investigation. More details were unavailable as it is an active investigation.

Lastly, Semosky reported that there was a large “altercation or disturbance” on the sandbar between Newtown and Southbury on July 3. He said that many local residents gather on the sandbar to drink and share food in a potluck fashion. He said there was “some kind of misunderstanding that led to a problem.”

Semosky said that there was no formal complaint issued on the incident but he encouraged someone who wrote the authority a letter through the authority’s website to reach out to the Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection to look into the incident.

“This could have been dangerous,” said Semosky. “There are children out there, people want to go out and have a good time out on their pontoon boats and kayaks, and now we have hotheads out there. We need to nip it in the bud.”

Associate Editor Jim Taylor can be reached at jim@thebee.com.