Boating safety courses planned for KC area

With the boating season just around the corner, the Missouri Highway Patrol announced it will offer safety certification courses in the Kansas City area.

Missouri law requires anyone born after Jan. 1, 1984, to carry a boating safety certification card along with a picture ID anytime they operate a vessel, including personal watercraft, on Missouri lakes.

While the courses are free, any student who successfully passes the course will be eligible to order the boating safety certification card for $15.

The courses will be offered from 9 am. to 3 p.m.:

• March 16 at the Harry S Truman Visitor Center, 2907 Visitor Center Road, in Warsaw, Mo.

• March 23 at the Bass Pro, 18001 Bass Pro Drive, in Independence.

• April 27 at Truman High School’s Small Lecture Hall, 3301 S. Noland Road, in Independence.

• May 4 at Jerry Litton Visitor Center, 16311 Route DD North, in Smithville.

• May 11 at Bass Pro in Independence.

• June 5 at the Harry S Truman Visitor Center in Warsaw.

Students are required to pre-register online as seating will be limited and so that they can be notified if the course is canceled.

For more information, including a complete listing of where other courses are being offered, go to the Missouri State Highway Patrol’s website’s Boater Safety Education & Certification section.