2019 Award Winners

Presented to Texas Game Warden Tyler Zaruba of the Texas Parks & Wildlife Department.

Over the Operation Dry Water weekend, Game Warden Zaruba made two (2) arrests for boating under the influence. Warden Zaruba leads the Houston Region in criminal citations and arrests.

Game Warden Zaruba’s attention to detail and ability to carefully establish the criminal elements of a case are renowned throughout the state. He always conducts his affairs with a high degree of integrity and sincerity, which promotes a positive image for the Texas enforcement efforts among the community. Game Warden Zaruba’s commitment to keeping the Texas waterways and roadways safe is unmatched.

Presented to the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department.

The 2019 Small Category Top Agency is awarded to the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department from the state of California. Over the course of the three-day heightened enforcement weekend, the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department deployed three (3) officers and made six (6) boating under the influence arrests. 

Presented to USCG Station Marblehead.

The Medium Category Top Agency is presented to USCG Station Marblehead in the state of Ohio. During the three-day Operation Dry Water weekend, USCG Station Marblehead deployed eighteen (18) officers and made ten (10) boating under the influence arrests. 

Presented to the North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission.

The 2019 Large Category Top Agency is awarded to the North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission. During the three-day Operation Dry Water weekend, the North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission deployed one-hundred and sixty-six (166) officers who made twenty-nine (29) boating under the influence arrests. 

Presented to the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department Law Enforcement Division.

Texas Parks and Wildlife created a media outreach campaign which took a number of innovated approaches to getting the Operation Dry Water messaging out prior to and during the ODW weekend. In total, Texas Game Wardens conducted 33 news interviews, to include both English and Spanish news channels, over the course of the 3-day weekend. Additionally, the Law Enforcement Division ran a social media campaign that consisted of 32 social media posts on various platforms. These social media posts produced over 650,000 unique impressions and engaged more than 74,000 people over the course of July 4th and the 2019 Operation Dry Water campaign.