"Marine Watch Program"
The Nassau County Police Marine Bureau has established a "Marine Watch" program to improve homeland security at waterfront businesses, facilities, criticical maritime infrastructure and other key marine resources on Long Island. The Marine Bureau should be immediately notified of any incident, emergency or accident occurring at any time on county waterways. Any suspicious activity on the water or at vulnerable waterfront locations or infrastructure should be reported to the Marine Bureau as soon as possible. You can contact the Nassau County Police Marine Bureau in the following ways:
By marine VHF radio:
You may hail all marine patrol vessels and the Marine Bureau headquarters at Bay Park, N.Y. on marine VHF radio channel 16.
If a police patrol vessel is in sight, you can hail the vessel directly on VHF channel 16 by requesting "Nassau County Police". If you see the number of the patrol vessel, it would be helpful to mention it in your request via channel 16.
In a true emergency involving life or limb, you may call "Mayday" directly on VHF channel 16. Be sure to clearly state your location, the nature of your emergency, a description of your vessel and the number of persons on board.
By telephone:
Dial 911 for true emergencies.
Dial (516) 573-4450 for non-emergencies involving quality of life enforcement, inquiries about marine police services, to provide information on criminal activity and other police related matters.
By distress signals:
When your vessel is in distress, activate the appropriate (required) visual distress signals (VDS) which may be observed by patrol vessels, persons on shore, aircraft or other boaters.
The resources of the Nassau County Police Marine Bureau are only a phone call or radio call away. We stand ready to protect and serve.