U.S. Coast Guard News – Page 2

Coast Guard Establishes IUU Fishing, Environmental Response Centers in Hawaii

The U.S. Coast Guard Marine Environmental Response Regional Activities Center (MER RAC) and the Illegal Unreported Unregulated Fisheries Center of Expertise (IUUF COE) were established during an Oct. 11 ceremony on Ford Island, Hawaii. Coast Guard Pacific Area Commander Vice Adm. Andrew Tiongson and Rear Adm. Jo-Ann Burdian, the Guard’s Assistant Commandant for Response Policy, presided over the ceremony. The IUUF COE is to serve as the international engagements arm for combatting illegal fishing activities in the Indo-Pacific, and further promote regional coordination to combat IUUF and better equip partner nations. “The intent of the IUUF COE is to increase maritime domain awareness, exchange valuable information, increase interoperability, and share best practices related to IUUF ...

Coast Guard Responds to Medical Emergency Aboard Fishing Vessel Near San Diego

Coast Guard Sector San Diego personnel on Oct. 12 responded to a medical emergency aboard a charter fishing vessel about 55 miles west of Point Loma. At about 1 p.m. on the above date, Coast Guard Sector San Diego watchstanders received a distress call from the charter fishing vessel Legend, reporting a medical emergency. A 79-year-old male passenger lost consciousness and fell, which was taken by the Coast Guard to be signs of a heart attack. Guard personnel responding to the emergency determined that the passenger required a higher level of medical care as soon as possible, so in response, Coast Guard Air Station San Diego launched an MH-60 Jayhawk helicopter crew. The helicopter crew arrived on scene, successfully hoisted the patient, and then transported him to Scripps Memorial Hosp...

Coast Guard Responds to Grounded Fishing Vessel on Catalina Island

The Coast Guard, along with California state and local agencies, responded to a commercial fishing vessel that ran aground on Catalina Island near Los Angeles the morning of Sept. 15. Coast Guard Sector Los Angeles/Long Beach watchstanders received a radio distress call around 2 a.m. from the Pacific Knight, a 62-foot commercial fishing vessel with eight people onboard, after it ran aground on the east end of the island. The boat also carried up to 2,500 gallons of diesel fuel. A good Samaritan fishing vessel and the Baywatch Avalon Los Angeles County lifeguard station on Catalina Island first responded to the incident. Avalon Baywatch transferred one crew member suffering from mild hypothermia to awaiting emergency medical services in the town of Avalon on the island. The remaining s...

Coast Guard, Partner Agencies Remove Hazardous Materials, Oil from Fishing Vessel

The U.S. Coast Guard in mid-September completed the removal of fuel, oil and hazardous materials from the fishing vessel Pacific Producer in Tacoma, Wash. The Guard, Washington Department of Ecology and the Tacoma Fire Department initially responded to a report of an anhydrous ammonia release on Aug. 13. The vessel was determined to present a significant threat to the environment. The federal on-scene coordinator took action in the interest of protecting public health and the environment, the Coast Guard said in a statement. During the response, hazmat crews secured the anhydrous ammonia release and removed 3,500 pounds of ammonia from the vessel. Contractors removed all miscellaneous hazmat from the vessel, including paint, flammable liquids, corrosives and pressurized gas cylinders,...

Coast Guard Cutter Healy Embarks on Arctic Ocean Mission

The Coast Guard cutter Healy and a team of researchers have embarked on a months-long mission to gain insight on how warmer water from the Atlantic Ocean is being introduced into the Arctic at the shelf water level, deep basin interior and upper ocean. The mission was announced by the U.S. Coast Guard on Aug. 26. According to the USCG, researchers from the National Science Foundation and International Arctic Research Center will service the Nansen and Amundsen Basins Observational System (NABOS), in hopes of developing an understanding of water circulation in the region and will sample the water column in areas normally inaccessible due to pack ice. Research findings would be of interest to the Crab Plan Team of the North Pacific Fishery Management Council, which has ongoing studies o...

Coast Guard Medevacs Fisherman 93 Miles Off San Diego Coast

A Coast Guard helicopter aircrew medically evacuated a 50-year-old male from the sport fishing vessel Spirit of Adventure about 93 miles west of Point Loma, on Aug. 16. Crew aboard the Spirit of Adventure contacted Coast Guard Sector San Diego Joint Harbor Operations Center at about 1:40 p.m. requesting assistance for a passenger who was displaying symptoms of a heart attack. Watchstanders launched a Coast Guard Sector San Diego MH-60 Jayhawk helicopter crew, including a San Diego Fire-Rescue Department Special Tactics and Rescue (STAR) Team paramedic, to assist. Once on the scene, the helicopter crew recovered the patient and transported her to Scripps Memorial Hospital La Jolla. The patient was later reported to be in stable condition.

Coast Guard Cutter Returns After 57-Day Arctic Ocean-Bering Sea Patrol

The Coast Guard cutter Alex Haley returned to its homeport of Kodiak, Alaska on Labor Day following a 57-day patrol in the Arctic Ocean and Bering Sea. The Alex Haley is a 282-foot Medium Endurance Cutter that performs search and rescue, fisheries law enforcement and vessel safety inspections across Alaska and has been homeported in Kodiak since 1999. Nicknamed the “Bulldog of the Bering,” the vessel supported multiple strategic-level objectives for the Seventeenth Coast Guard District and the U.S. Northern Command during its 57-day mission, including providing presence along the U.S. Maritime Boundary Line and supporting U.S. Navy assets during a transit through the Bering Sea. The cutter also navigated the Bering Strait into the Arctic Ocean, and crewmembers aboard the Alex Haley fu...

Coast Guard Cutter Munro Visits Japan, South Korea

The U.S. Coast Guard cutter Munro visited Yokosuka, Japan and the Republic of Korea during international port visits conducted in July and August. In Japan, the Munro conducted training and engagements with the Japan Coast Guard; in Gwangyang, South Korea, the cutter conducted several days of engagements and exchanges with the Korea Coast Guard. The Munro arrived Aug. 6 while deployed in the Indo-Pacific and hosted several members of the Japan Coast Guard for professional exchanges, including showcasing the Munro’s small boat and aerial capabilities and search-and-rescue operations. The visit allowed members of both services to discuss their dual mission objectives and share maritime security challenges. The Munro’s commanding officer, Capt. Rula Deisher, said it has been a privile...

U.S. Coast Guard Alaska Responds to Multiple Fishing Vessel Medevacs

On Aug. 25, Coast Guard District 17 command center personnel received a medevac request from the fishing vessel Northern Eagle at 6:20 a.m. for a 26-year-old crewmember experiencing abdominal pain. An MH-60 Jayhawk helicopter air crew launched from Coast Guard Air Station Kodiak and hoisted the crewmember at 8:15 p.m. about 23 miles northwest of St Paul Island. The man was then flown to St. Paul where he was transferred to commercial emergency medical services at 9 p.m. for further care in Anchorage. Also on Aug. 25, Coast Guard District 17 command center personnel received a medevac request from the fishing vessel Asian Majesty at 4:25 p.m. for a 41-year-old male crew member experiencing chest pain. At the time of the request, the vessel was about 483 miles southwest of Dutch Harbor a...

Coast Guard Investigates After Laser Strike Hits Boat Crew

The U.S. Coast Guard opened an investigation and sought information from the public regarding a suspect or suspects who pointed a green laser light into the eyes of a Coast Guard Station Tillamook Bay boat crew member west of the Tillamook Bay entrance near Garibaldi, Ore. Around 10:45 p.m. July 19, the 47-foot motor lifeboat crew reported that a laser was shined into the eyes of one of crew members while the vessel was conducting training operations about a mile offshore, northwest of the Tillamook Bay North Jetty. The boat crew reported the laser originated near Nedonna Beach or Manhattan Beach off the Oregon coast. Laser pointers can cause danger to Coast Guard air crews, boat crews and cutter crews due to glare, after-image, flash blindness or temporary loss of night vision. If a ...