U.S. Coast Guard to unveil Arctic strategy
Tomorrow, Coast Guard Commandant Adm. Bob Papp will release the U.S. Coast Guard Arctic Strategy to guide our efforts in the region over the next 10 years. This strategy is based on nearly 150 years of Coast Guard experience in maritime operations in the Arctic region, since the U.S. Revenue Cutter Lincoln first arrived in the new U.S. territory of Alaska in 1867.
Shipmate of the Week – BM3 Michael Valdes
In 1867 the U.S. Revenue Cutter Service, predecessor service to the U.S. Coast Guard, transported the first federal officials to the territory of Alaska. From this modest beginning, cutters would eventually sail into the Arctic and the Bering Sea to protect the sea and those on it. Thus, “The Bering Sea Patrol” was born. Today, Coast Guard men and women continue to sail the Bering’s frigid waters, from the Akutan to the Pribilofs. It takes a certain type of sailor to perform operations in these waters; Petty Officer 3rd Class Michael Valdes is one such Coast Guardsman.
Shutter Shootout First Round
March Madness has arrived! With brackets on everyone’s minds, we bring you our own tournament in the form of “Shutter Shootout” – your chance to select the Coast Guard photo of the year. We scoured the past year’s photos and the ones with the most “likes” on Facebook made the cut. Now it’s your turn to decide the best! Will it be a Cinderella story this year?
Striper finders not always keepers
The pre-dawn January morning was chilled with a light breeze while wisps of fog clung to the distant skylines of Portsmouth and Norfolk. The crew of Shearwater was underway for Operation Striper Swiper, a federal and state initiative to preserve the striped bass population in federal waters — three nautical miles out from the shore and beyond to 200 nautical miles.
Protecting the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary
Beneath the blue waters of the Florida Keys, the continental United States’ only living-coral barrier reef stretches for miles. The reef and surrounding waters generate more than $2.3 billion annually for the local economy, create more than 33,000 ocean jobs throughout the Florida Keys and support fisheries that feeds millions. Across this economically important area, the Coast Guard maintains 450 buoys, markers and aids to navigation that safely guides water traffic through the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary.
Saving our oceans one turtle at a time
It was an emergency wildlife mission. A bunch of sick, cold Northeast turtles were stuck in Cape Cod trying to swim south and needed a quick lift to Florida. The Coast Guard heeded the call with a C-130J Hercules based out of Elizabeth City, N.C. The 70-pound Loggerhead and the smaller five to 10-pound Kemp’s Ridley turtles are in various stages of recovery from pneumonia and hypothermia. A record stranding of more than 200 sea turtles off the Northeast coast in early winter exceeded the New England Aquarium’s capacity to house the nearly comatose reptiles. Sensing urgency, the NOAA Fisheries Northeast Stranding Network facilitated a request for the emergency flight.
Safeguarding the humpback whale
Written by 14th Coast Guard District public affairs. The Coast Guard is a key protector of our nation’s critical marine habitats and the endangered species dependent on them. These ocean resources are particularly important to those in the 14th [...]
Protecting the Florida manatee
America’s waterways and their ecosystems are vital to the country’s economy and health. The Coast Guard helps sustain our natural resources and protect the nation’s rich marine environment by working with local, state and federal partners. Recently, the Coast Guard formalized their partnership with U.S. Fish and Wildlife to reinforce efforts in safeguarding the Florida manatee.
From the Arctic
We last heard about the amazing men and women aboard Coast Guard Cutter Healy in January when they raced to re-supply fuel to the ice-encrusted harbor of Nome, Alaska. Not one to rest on their laurels, crewmembers are currently underway once again on a different – but just as important – mission. Healy is currently supporting scientific research in the cold, dynamic waters of the Arctic on their Arctic West Summer 2012 deployment.
Cutter Edisto helps wayward sea lion
As part of the service’s living marine resources mission, the Coast Guard teams up with a variety of organizations to aid in protecting and responding to distressed animals, including sea lions. Such was the case for Southern California crews with Franklin, a wayward sea lion.
