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2022 Operation Dry Water Award Winners
September 29, 2022 | Story courtesy Operation Dry Water (ODW)
Officer of the Year, Top Agency Awards & the Media Award

The Operation Dry Water Awards Program recognizes law enforcement officers and agencies that are making a positive impact on boating under the influence (BUI). Congratulations to this year’s ODW Officer of the Year, Top Agencies and Media Award winners!

2022 ODW Officer of the Year

 

Officer Specialist Nicole Basford, Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission

 

Over the Operation Dry Water weekend, Officer Specialist Nicole Basford made four arrests for boating under the influence over the 72-hour period.
Officer Specialist Basford is a ten-year veteran of conservation law enforcement who showed an interest and capability for BUI enforcement early in her career. Over the course of her career, OS Basford has made 58 BUI/DUI cases, mentored countless officers and investigators regarding BUI enforcement, trained new officers and led targeted BUI enforcement details. In addition to her patrol duties, OS Basford is a BUI instructor at the FWC Academy and teaches BUI curriculum in the Northwest Region and for partner agencies.

2022 ODW Top Agency Award
 

Small Agency Category

This year’s Top Agency in the small category is the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department out of the state of California. Over the course of the three-day heightened awareness and enforcement weekend, the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department deployed three officers and made 15 boating under the influence arrests.

Medium Agency Category

The 2022 Top Agency in the medium category is the Mississippi Department of Marine Resources. During the three-day Operation Dry Water weekend, the Mississippi Department of Marine Resources deployed 26 officers who made 10 boating under the influence arrests.

Large Agency Category

This year’s Top agency in the large category is the North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission. Over the course of the Operation Dry Water weekend, the North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission deployed 153 officers and made 65 boating under the influence arrests.

2022 ODW Media Award

Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency

The Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency (TWRA) officers statewide, command staff, and media team have taken a powerful stance and role in educating and enforcing BUI laws through numerous in-person events, partnerships, social media platforms, all available news media outlets, and press conferences. These efforts are always magnified through their Operation Dry Water weekend efforts. The TWRA Boating & Law Enforcement Division hosted a press conference on July 1, 2022, in Nashville, Tennessee, in partnership with NASBLA, Mothers Against Drunk Driving, the U.S. Coast Guard, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, and the U.S. Coast Guard Auxiliary. This press event was designed to bring national attention to the fact that boating under the influence is driving under the influence and should be viewed by boaters, prosecutors, and judges as one in the same.
Congratulations to the 2022 Operation Dry Water award winners!
We appreciate your dedication to keeping our nation’s waterways safe. Thank you for all you do!
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