As stated above, the number 1 thing you can do to keep everyone safe is to have them in their life jackets "before" you go into anything big. Not saying that you have to wear them all the time. The rivers we run are pretty placid with some big drops every now and then. I simply tell the guys its life jacket time. I have not seen many sunken drift boats in 20 years of steelhead fishing, but have seen some jet boats at the bottom. In some places in the main Salmon river, and the Snake, there are several boats that were never salvaged. The boat simply wraps itself around the motor like a big 6000 lb smashed beer can.