Wasaga Beach Provincial Park receives new patrol boat

After 20 years, a new patrol boat is now on the water in Wasaga Beach.

"One of the biggest differences people will notice about this boat is that it's much more visible than our previous boat. The last one was much smaller, tended to blend in with a lot of other boats on the bay because it does get quite busy on the beachfront here. This one here, the graphic scene was designed to be very visible and much larger," said Benjamin Dasti, Wasaga Beach Provincial Park Superintendent.

The main area the park wardens patrol is the 14-kilometre stretch along Wasaga Beach Provincial Park.

Staff said the new boat is a vital asset with the number of visitors the park sees on an annual basis and with the community expanding the way it is.

"Wasaga Beach Provincial Park we are the largest freshwater beach in the world, and as a result of that, we do see some of the highest visitation for a day-use facility, and it averages between 1.8 and two million visitors each and every season, and that's just recorded stuff, not including walk-on's," said Dasti.

The vessel will become familiar to people enjoying the waters this summer.

The patrol boat is a long-term investment and is expected to be in service for the next 20 to 25 years.