SCE&G should make Lake Murray safer

While I don’t know the details about the horrific accident at Lake Murray on Aug. 13 where a boater hit a dock, I do know that Lake Murray could be made safer.

Docks should be required to have reflective devices on all sides. While this may not have prevented the accident, it could help in the future.

Since SCE&G has proprietary approval over dock construction, why doesn’t it require owners to take down docks that are no longer functional? You can ride the shoreline anywhere and see pilings sticking out of the water where a dock once was, or partial docks that have come unattached. There are also docks that extend to islands. How safe is this?

Lights placed on a few islands could serve as navigational beacons to help those who get lost and are left to float in the lake until sunrise.

I appreciate all that the Department of Natural Resources and Lexington, Richland and Newberry counties do for boaters, but shouldn’t SCE&G take some responsibility regarding docks? Oh wait, I forgot: It’s SCE&G.

If we want to keep hosting these big fishing tournaments, which are good for our state, we need to make it as safe as possible so fishers continue to return to our great lake.

This story was originally published August 19, 2017 at 8:26 AM with the headline "SCE&G should make Lake Murray safer."