Coast Guard helps keep track of boats with stickers

BURLINGTON, Vermont (AP) ― The United States Coast Guard has a new colorful solution to the problem of the tide washing boats away.

Coast Guard officials tell WPTZ-TV that they have been handing out orange identification stickers in preparation for boating season.

Matt Harris, a spokesperson for the Coast Guard, explains that once the sticker is attached to a canoe or a kayak, they will work like luggage tags. Harris says that Coast Guard will be able to find the boat and return it to its owner if the tide washes it away.

Authorities say the stickers also help to quickly identify areas where boaters have fallen in and need to be rescued.