The Iowa Department of Natural Resources is warning you to remain careful if you plan on being out on the state’s rain swollen rivers this weekend. D-N-R Outreach Coordinator for River Programs, Todd Robertson, says high water brought on by heavy rains is sweeping a significant amount of extra material into the fast moving current of the rivers. “When you get a lot of rain, if you went and stood by the river and looked upstream you would see all this debris coming downstream: trees, tree limbs, things that have washed in off the bank, those things can be very hazardous for people,” Robertson explains.

Robertson says you must have enough life jackets on your boat. “An adult doesn’t have to have a life jacket on, but it has to be onboard, which when you think about it, when you need it, if you don’t have it on, it’s not gonna do you any good, so you might as well just have it on,” Robertson says. And for kids under 12 if they don’t have a life jacket — it could cost you. “If you take the kids out, the family and they don’t have their life jackets on you can face a citation for sure,” Robertson says.

Robertson suggests instead of rivers, family outings may be safer on so-called flat water venues like lakes and large ponds.

(Radio Iowa)