Shoreside safety inspections

Captains,

Shipboard inspections are familiar to most mariners, but when it comes to containerized cargo, USCG conducts compliance inspections road-side. Multi-agency truck inspections are effective for both maritime and highway safety.

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NORFOLK, Va. – The Coast Guard, along with other federal, state and local agencies, conducted a joint operation at Hampton Roads port facilities Tuesday and Wednesday.

Inspections were conducted at the Norfolk International Terminal, AP Moller-Maersk facility and Portsmouth Marine Terminal. Similar joint operations were simultaneously conducted at the Maryland Port Administration's Seagirt and Dundalk Marine Terminals.

Agencies that took part in the Hampton Roads operation included: The Coast Guard, Customs and Border Protection, Department of Transportation Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration, Immigration and Customs Enforcement, National Cargo Bureau, Virginia International Terminal Port Police VPA, Virginia Emergency Management division, Hampton Police Department, Chesapeake Police Department, Norfolk Police Department and the Norfolk Fire Department and HAZMAT team.

The operation involved the inspection of trucks as they entered and left the marine terminals with shipments from both domestic and international locations. Inspections included verifying proper truck and container documentation, structural integrity of shipping containers, licensing, customs and fuel tax compliance and hazardous material markings, packaging and segregation.

Radio Technology to the rescue

Captains,

The combined benefits of the Coast Guard's new Rescue 21 distress radio system and the vessel monitoring system (VMS) that was installed and operating on the F/V Joanne H contributed to the rescue of three fishermen this week. Rescue 21 pinpoints the mayday transmission with lines of bearing from multiple towers, and VMS transmits the vessel's name and GPS position.

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The Cape Cod Times Tuesday, October 26, 2010
CHATHAM - Three fishermen were rescued by the Coast Guard after their fishing boat caught fire about 17 miles east of Chatham early Tuesday morning. A Mayday call came from the fishing vessel Joanne H, a 48-foot boat out of Harwich, at 5:45 a.m., according to a Coast Guard press release. The fisherman who radioed the call for help was able to say "Mayday, Mayday, Mayday, this is Joanne H. We're on fire. My position is ..." before the transmission was lost, according to the release.

The Coast Guard was able to figure out the location of the burning vessel using its Vessel Monitoring System and an advanced rescue communication system called Rescue 21. Once the location of the boat was determined, a Jayhawk helicopter was launched from Air Station Cape Cod. A 42-foot boat from Coast Guard Station Chatham also responded to the rescue scene.

When Coast Guard rescuers arrived, the Joanne H was fully engulfed in flames, according to the release. The fishermen abandoned the burning vessel and were in a life raft. Rescuers were able to find them after they shot a red flare into the sky.

Worthy recognition of heroism

Captains,

It's always good to see deserving deckhands getting a bit of recognition. Frank Massaro, the worthy deckhand receiving this award, must have had his hands full when he got to the person he was rescuing. It's good to know there's people like Frank working on the water. Who knows how many people are saved by good samaritans? A life saved makes me feel good no matter what the circumstances were.

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Water Taxi Worker Receives Heroism Medal From Coast Guard

Posted: 2:14 pm PDT October 19, 2010Updated: 2:32 pm PDT October 19, 2010

SEATTLE -- A deckhand on the King County water taxi is being hailed as a hero for saving a man who leaped into the waters of Puget Sound.

The Coast Guard said Frank A. Massaro was called upon to help a man who was perched on a railing about 20 feet above the water at the Washington State Ferries Pier 50 in Seattle.

Despite an attempt to persuade the man to move away from the end of the pier, the man leaped into the Puget Sound without warning, the Coast Guard said.

After the man refused to take hold of a life ring, Massaro donned a life jacket, followed the man into the water, latched onto the man and maneuvered him out from under the pier to an area that could be reached by rescue boats.

ME3 Shaun Lin

Captains,

The tragic loss of Coast Guardsman Shaun Lin last week brought to mind this passage from Chapter VI of Dana's classic 'Two Years Before the Mast'.

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"Death is at all times solemn, but never so much so as at sea....at sea, the man is near you—at your side—you hear his voice, and in an instant he is gone, and nothing but a vacancy shows his loss. Then, too, at sea—to use a homely but expressive phrase—you miss a man so much. A dozen men are shut up together in a little bark, upon the wide, wide sea, and for months and months see no forms and hear no voices but their own and one is taken suddenly from among them, and they miss him at every turn. It is like losing a limb. There are no new faces or new scenes to fill up the gap. There is always an empty berth in the forecastle, and one man wanting when the small night watch is mustered. There is one less to take the wheel and one less to lay out with you upon the yard. You miss his form, and the sound of his voice, for habit had made them almost necessary to you, and each of your senses feels the loss." Richard Henry Dana Jr. 1815-1852

PORTSMOUTH, Va. October 15, 2010 – The Coast Guard has identified the body of the Coast Guardsman who died after falling into the James River near Newport News during a training exercise Wednesday.

Deceased is Petty Officer 3rd Class Shaun Lin, 23, of New York. Lin, a Maritime Enforcement Specialist, has served the Coast Guard for approximately 3 years.

The victim's next of kin have been notified and support services are being provided to his family, as well as Coast Guard crewmembers.

At approximately 9:15 p.m., Wednesday Oct. 13, Lin, a member of the Maritime Safety and Security Team New York fell from a ladder into the James River while attempting to transfer from a Maritime Safety and Security Team 25-foot small boat to the Coast Guard Cutter Frank Drew during a training exercise in the vicinity of the Monitor-Merrimac Bridge Tunnel near Newport News.

The crew aboard the small boat attempted a recovery but lost sight of the overboard crewmember.

An immediate search began with surface and air assets as well as a sub-surface search with local police and fire dive teams and side scan sonar.

Shipboard fires still threaten passengers

Captains,

Marine safety specialists in the USCG watched the most recent passenger vessel fire with great interest just days after noting the 30th anniversary of the loss of the C/S Prinsendam due to a fire. Fortunately in both cases, the passengers and crew were all saved.

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Fire-Hit Ferry In Baltic Sea 'Is Now Safe'

8:36am UK, Monday October 11, 2010

Richard Williams, Sky News Online

A 650ft ferry set on fire in the Baltic Sea by an explosion on its upper decks is no longer at risk of sinking, officials say.

The ferry was anchored off the southern tip of the Danish island Langeland

Hundreds of passengers were rescued as firefighting ships sprayed the Lisco Gloria with water to keep it from breaking apart and spilling some 170 tons of fuel.

But Dirk Reichenbach, spokeswoman for Germany's Central Command for Maritime Emergencies, said the blaze was now under control.

The 249 people aboard the vessel were collected by six ships, with three taken to hospitals by helicopter for treatment and another 28 suffering minor injuries.

The Lithuanian-flagged ferry was traveling from the German port of Kiel to Klaipeda.

Congratulations to new marine inspectors and investigators

Captains,

I recently attended a graduation at USCG Training Center, Yorktown VA. It's good to know that the new marine inspectors and investigators are well trained and eager to continue the tradition of marine safety service when they return to their home ports.

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Marine Inspection & Investigations School

Overview

The Marine Inspection and Investigation School supports the Coast Guard's efforts to promote safety of life and property at sea by providing performance based training to marine inspectors and investigators.

• The Coast Guard Marine Inspection Program establishes national design, construction, equipment, and operations regulations for merchant, fishing, and recreational vessels. The Coast Guard also works through the International Maritime Organization to improve commercial vessel safety on a global scale. Marine Inspectors are typically tasked with enforcing a host of national and international treaties and conventions.
• The Coast Guard Marine Investigation Program investigates and determines the cause of marine casualties involving commercial vessels. Investigating Officers may take a variety of actions against Merchant Mariners who are found at be at fault in a marine casualty, including civil penalties (fines), administrative procedures (loss of license/document), and/or criminal procedures (prison).

Caribbean freight ship sinks

Captains,

A 206 ft Caribbean freight ship sank this week after her crew was unable to mitigate flooding. It's unclear why the vessel was taking on water. Thankfully, the radios, life rafts, and rescue coordination system worked as designed.

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Coast Guard Cutter Nantucket crew returns home after helping to save 10 lives

Posted by cgnews on 10/10/10 ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — The crew of the Coast Guard Cutter Nantucket returned home to St. Petersburg today after a successful patrol resulted in crewmembers helping save 10 lives in the Bahamas.

The Nantucket was on patrol off South Florida Thursday, when a 206-foot cargo ship capsized and broke into pieces near Damas Cay in the Cay Sal Bank, Bahamas.

Coast Guard search-and-rescue coordinators in Key West received a mayday call at 2:08 p.m. Wednesday from the motor vessel Mystic, a 206-foot cargo ship with 10 persons aboard. The Mystic passed a position, but no nature of distress was given and the vessel was unable to hear any response from Coast Guard rescue operators.

Coast Guard Sector Key West watchstanders received notification at 3 a.m. that the Mystic was in danger of capsizing, and the 10-member crew of the vessel was making preparations to abandon ship. At 4 a.m. the 10 crew members of the Mystic abandoned ship into two liferafts.

A Coast Guard helicopter aircrew that had pre-staged in Marathon through the night launched and arrived on scene with the Mystic at 4:10 a.m. and Nantucket launched their small boat, to effect a coordinated response.

At 4:30 a.m. the Nantucket smallboat crew recovered four of the individuals in liferafts and the rescue helicopter crew deployed their rescue swimmer who assisted in hoisting the remaining six people and one dog onto the helicopter.

Congress validates marine safety mission

Captains,

The U. S. Congress validated the Coast Guard's marine safety mission and performance plan (first published in 2008). The 2010 CG Reauthorization Bill includes provisions to ensure marine inspector, investigator, and safety engineer competencies and requires Coast Guard officers with regulatory decision authority to have a minimum threshold of experience. The bill also prompts the Coast Guard to improve safety standards for towing and fishing vessels.

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Congress Approves Coast Guard Reauthorization Bill

Bill reforms Coast Guard’s acquisition program, strengthens safety

SEPTEMBER 29, 2010 By Mary Kerr, (202)225-6260

Legislation to reauthorize funding for the U.S. Coast Guard has been approved by both the Senate and House of Representatives. H.R. 3619, as amended, the Coast Guard Authorization Act of 2010, authorizes $10.2 billion in fiscal year 2011 to allow the Coast Guard to meet its critical missions of marine safety and maritime security.

H.R. 3619 was originally passed by the House on October 23, 2009, and the Senate approved its amendment to the legislation on May 7, 2010. The bipartisan legislation passed by both the House and the Senate reflects the reconciliation of the two versions of the bill.

In addition to establishing the necessary funding levels, the bill makes administrative changes to the Coast Guard, revises laws applying to shipping and navigation, improves the Coast Guard’s acquisition programs, enhances marine safety, reduces the risk of oil spills, improves port and cargo security, and aligns U.S. law with international standards related to anti-fouling systems.

LNG powered ships

Captains,

I just returned from participation in the North Atlantic Coast Guard Forum annual meeting of 20 Coast Guards with interests in the North Atlantic and Arctic. I was pleased to learn that the Norwegian Coast Guard operates dual diesel-LNG powered vessels. Pictured below is the offshore patrol vessel, N0CGV Barentshav, commissioned in August 2009.

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A New Focus on Natural Gas-Powered Vessels
September 30, 2010
The use of natural gas in the form of LNG (liquefied natural gas) as a fuel for vessels in the United States is receiving focus from both the natural gas and maritime industries.

At the September meeting of the Natural Gas Roundtable of Washington, D.C., speakers from the natural gas and maritime industries addressed “Natural Gas and the Marine Industry – the Next Major Gas Demand Opportunity and Strategic Implications.” Historically, LNG as a vessel fuel has been restricted to certain operations in the Scandinavian countries.

Although existing vessels can be converted to natural gas, most of the demand will come from new construction. It has been reported that the investment in using LNG fueled engines should be recouped within two years.

Environmental benefits from the use of LNG can be significant. By August 2012 ships in the coastal waters of the United States and Canada will have to comply with low sulfur requirements of the North American Emission Control Area. Natural gas can be a logical fuel supply to satisfy these types of requirements for reduced emissions. Pipeline quality gas has near-zero SO₂, and about 20 percent of the NO₂and 80 percent of the CO₂ of alternative marine fuels.

J. Michael Cavanaugh- Washington
James "Jim" Hohenstein- New York
Joel F. Zipp- Washington

"Responder" completes mission

Captains,

It's good to see the work horses of the nation's inventory of high-capacity offshore oil recovery returning to their home ports. Marine Spill Response Corporation operates 15 "Responder" class OSRVs, 210 ft special built vessels with oil-water separator systems. Most were deployed to the Gulf of Mexico for several months and collectively were the most effective offshore oil recovery asset.

This picture of the Maine Responder and the CGC Shackle was actually taken last winter during the Spill of National Significance (SONS) exercise conducted in Portland Maine. Little did we know at that time there would be a real SONS within weeks.

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September 30

Maine Responder returns to Portland today

PORTLAND — A 208-foot oil-spill cleanup vessel is arriving in Maine after spending nearly five months working on the Gulf of Mexico oil spill.

The Coast Guard says the Maine Responder is scheduled to arrive in port this morning.

The vessel is owned by the Marine Spill Response Corp. and kept on the Portland waterfront.

It usually responds to oil spills in the Northeast, but was sent to the Gulf in May. The vessel has thousands of feet of booms to contain and absorb spills and equipment to remove it from the water.