Wrangell Sentinel -

ANCHORAGE (AP) - A new federal law will require operators of recreational boats less than 26 feet in length to use an engine cut-off switch with a safety link that attaches the operator to the control device to shut off the engine if the operator is knocked from the helm.

The new law applies only to boats built beginning in January 2020.

Boats with the primary helm inside an enclosed cabin are exempt from the new law.

The U.S. Coast Guard said it receives reports every year about recreational vessel operators who fall off of or are suddenly thrown off their boat.

“During these incidents,...