Code of Federal Regulations Title 33. Navigation and Navigable Waters § 33.13.01–20 Definitions

(a) “Peril of the water” includes all perils on water caused by, or which are such by reason of, the sea or bodies of water such as lakes, bays, sounds and rivers;  whenever, wherever and in whatever way human life is directly imperiled by the sea or a body of water is a peril of the water.

(b) A “shipwreck” includes an incident threatening persons whose lives are endangered by perils of the water as well as those who are, strictly speaking, no longer in danger from the sea or a body of water, that peril already having passed, but who are in imminent danger and in great need of succor or rescue, as e.g., being adrift in an open boat or stranded on some barren coast where, without succor or rescue, they would die of starvation, thirst, or exposure.

(c) “Waters within the United States or subject to the jurisdiction thereof,” embrace all waters within the United States, and any other waters over which the United States exercises jurisdiction.