All the items on your boat the CG Auxiliary checks are the same items the active-duty Coast Guard or Marine Patrol will check if you’re stopped and boarded; if any item is missing, expired, worn out, or defective the Auxiliary member will give you a list showing the items you need to acquire or get up to requirements. No one else will receive copies of that list. It’s then up to you to get the listed items taken care of or not.

To see what’s covered in a Vessel Safety Check (VSC), go to the Flotilla 2-5 website http://www.flotilla25.org. and click on “Vessel Safety Checks” on the left side of the page.

If everything is onboard and in good shape, the vessel examiner will put a 2023 Vessel Safety Check sticker on your boat. That sticker is not a guarantee that you won’t get boarded by the Coast Guard or Marine Patrol anyway, but you won’t need to worry because everything is present and correct.

All hours are 9 a.m. to noon unless otherwise noted

June 3: Carousel Marina, Boothbay Harbor

June 10: Tugboat, Boothbay Harbor; Brown’s, Boothbay Harbor; Direcktor/Robinhood, Georgetown

June 17: Boothbay Harbor Marina, Boothbay Harbor; Kennebec Tavern Marina, Bath

June 24: Bowdoinham Town Dock; Richmond Town Dock 1 to 3 p.m.

June 25: Hodgdon Yacht Services/Marina, Southport

If you can’t make it to one of these locations, you can arrange a VSC by visiting the link: https://wow.uscgaux.info/i_want_a_vsc/index.php

When the form is submitted, CG Auxiliary vessel examiners in your area will be notified and will contact you to set up an appointment.

Finding out too late that your fire extinguisher is dead, or your navigation lights are out, can be dangerous and expensive. AfFree Vessel Safety Check can be both a money and life saving plan.