WASHINGTON - The Coast Guard Auxiliary has joined forces with the Alliance for Safe Navigation (Alliance) to inform boaters of the importance of maintaining current navigation information.  Alliance members include the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), BoatUS, Jeppesen Marine, the U.S. Power Squadron, OceanGrafix, and the Sea Tow Foundation for Boating Safety and Education.

Surveys have revealed that most boaters are not concerned about the accuracy of their charts and related navigation information. More than three quarters do not pay attention to local notice to mariners issued by the Coast Guard. The Coast Guard Auxiliary will utilize its Alliance partnership to promote boating safety.

For more information concerning the Alliance, see www.allianceforsafenavigation.org.

WASHINGTON − The Coast Guard Auxiliary is teaming with WindCheck magazine of Bridgeport, Connecticut, to help promote boating safety. WindCheck joins several boating magazines serving the boating public featuring stories about boating – and boating safety. WindCheck, published eleven times per year, distributes over 30,000 copies to more than 850 yacht clubs, marinas, marine stores, select restaurants and other waterfront venues in New Jersey, New York, Connecticut, Rhode Island and Massachusetts.

WASHINGTON – The Coast Guard Auxiliary national board has elected new senior leadership to guide the organization through October 2014.

Commodore Thomas C. Mallison of Bear Lake, Mich. was elected as the organization’s national commodore.  Mallison will succeed current National Commodore James E. Vass, Jr. who is completing his two-year term of office.  Mallison has served as vice national commodore under Vass since November 2010. 

“The expanding number of operational, administrative and logistical missions that the Coast Guard Auxiliary is able to perform gives us ever-increasing opportunities for service,” said Mallison.  “Every member should be able to attain personal satisfaction within that array of missions.”

Mallison has identified “training, communication, and members” as the watchwords that will help guide the Auxiliary’s focus during his tenure as national commodore.

Commodore Mark Simoni of Saginaw, Mich. was elected to succeed Mallison as the vice national commodore of the Coast Guard Auxiliary.  Simoni previously served as a deputy national commodore overseeing the Midwestern U.S. region.

District Commodore Harold A. Marschall of First District – Southern Region, was elected to serve as the deputy national commodore -Atlantic area east.

District Commodore Richard Washburn of Eight District - Eastern Region, was elected to serve as the deputy national commodore - Atlantic area west.

District Commodore Angelo A. Perata of Eleventh District - Northern Region, was elected to serve as the deputy national commodore - Pacific area.

These commodore-elects will serve a two-year term beginning November 1, 2012.  The elections were held at the Coast Guard Auxiliary national conference (NACON) in San Antonio last week.

NACON was hosted by the Coast Guard Auxiliary Association, Inc., a non-profit organization based in St. Louis that provides business management, financial and training support for the Coast Guard Auxiliary. 

SAN ANTONIO – Coast Guard Auxiliary senior leaders today elected Commodore Thomas C. Mallison of Bear Lake, Mich. as the organization’s national commodore for a two-year term beginning November 1, 2012.  The election was held at the Coast Guard Auxiliary National Conference (NACON) underway at the Hyatt Regency Riverwalk hotel. 

Mallison will succeed current National Commodore James E. Vass, Jr. who is completing his two-year term of office.  Mallison has served as vice national commodore under Vass since November 2010.  

“The expanding number of operational, administrative and logistical missions that the Coast Guard Auxiliary is able to perform gives us ever-increasing opportunities for service,” said Mallison.  “Every member should be able to attain personal satisfaction within that array of missions.”

Mallison has identified “training, communication, and members” as the watchwords that will help guide the Auxiliary’s focus during his tenure as national commodore.

Prior to 2010, Mallison served as deputy national commodore - operations policy and Atlantic area west, 2009-2010, district commodore, Eighth District eastern region, 2007-08, district vice commodore, 2005-06, and district rear commodore west, 2003-04.  He served as department chief of the Coast Guard Auxiliary National Department of Personnel from 2000-02.

Mallison is a graduate of the U.S. Military Academy with a Bachelor of Science in Mathematics and Science. He graduated with honors from the U.S. Army Command and General Staff College and earned a Doctorate of Business Administration.

Mallison joined the Coast Guard Auxiliary in 1990 and has served in a wide variety of elected and staff offices at all levels of the organization. His Auxiliary certifications include coxswain, private aids to navigation verifier, recreational boating safety program visitor, vessel examiner, instructor, and qualification examiner. Mallison also holds the advanced “Operational Auxiliarist” designation.

Retired from Systran Corporation in Dayton, Ohio where he served as vice president and director of administration, Mallison served on the boards of directors of three manufacturing companies and a nonprofit corporation in the medical sector during his business career.

Prior to Systran, Mallison retired with twenty-years of service in the U.S. Army where he served as both a commissioned officer and a non-commissioned officer.  His overseas tours included Germany, Korea and Vietnam.

Mallison is married to the former Wanda Rodieck from Nevada, Mo.

NACON is hosted by the Coast Guard Auxiliary Association, Inc., a non-profit organization based in St. Louis that provides business management, financial and training support for the Coast Guard Auxiliary. 

For additional information on NACON 2012, please visit: cgauxa.org/nacon
 

Commodore Thomas C. Mallison, National Commodore (elect) of the U.S. Coast Guard Auxiliary
U.S. Coast Guard photo

SAN ANTONIO – The U.S. Coast Guard Auxiliary will hold its 2012 National Convention (NACON) August 22-26 at the Hyatt Regency Riverwalk hotel.  Coast Guard Auxiliary members from throughout the nation will converge for the national elections, business meetings, training workshops, and fellowship.

Senior leaders representing the sixteen Coast Guard Auxiliary districts and the national organization will elect a new national commodore to succeed Commodore James E. Vass, Jr. who is completing his two-year term of office.

“As I complete my two years, it is with great pride yet with sadness that I leave as the leader of the world's best volunteer organization,” Vass said.  “I want to thank the more than 30,000 members for the millions of volunteer hours that they have invested to ensure that boating safety is made a priority to the boating public.”

NACON is hosted by the Coast Guard Auxiliary Association, Inc. (CGAuxA), a non-profit organization based in St. Louis that provides business, financial, and training support for the Coast Guard Auxiliary. 

For additional information on NACON 2012, please visit: cgauxa.org/nacon

Official logo of the 2012 Coast Guard Auxiliary National Convention in San Antonio.
Coast Guard Auxiliary illustration. 

U.S. Coast Guard Auxiliary National Commodore James E. Vass, Jr.
U.S. Coast Guard photo.

WASHINGTON- Keeping track of appointments or events has become more complex in a very over scheduled world. A list of reminders added to the calendar on the refrigerator or in the smartphone can help make sure nothing is forgotten. When it comes to leisure time a checklist is still valuable especially when heading out onto the water.

Create a pre-underway checklist like the Coast Guard Auxiliary has for their boat crews. Each time before an Auxiliary boat leaves the dock the entire crew reviews a standardized checklist together. Once all the items on the list are checked off it is time to get underway.

It does not have to be complicated; this is just an example of a pre-underway checklist you could use:

• Driver's license
• Current registration papers and boating safety course completion card
• Check fuel supply and oil level
• Working proper navigation lights for night operations
• Enough lifejackets, the right size for all
• Marine radio
• GPS
• Float plan left in your vehicle or with a friend
• Other emergency equipment such as flares, first aid kit, signaling devices and tools

If something does not add up it is OK not to get underway. It is always better to choose safety than take a risk with your life or the lives of your passengers.

 Photo by Diane Riggan
David Elliot USCG Auxiliary Assistant National Commodore for Response and Prevention reviews pre-underway checklist with crew member Wayne Johnson before getting underway

WASHINGTON – Hypothermia is not just a winter danger...it's a summertime danger, too.  With air temperatures climbing well into the 80s and 90s in many parts of the country, hardly anyone gives a thought to hypothermia while cruising down a river, spending hours fishing on their favorite lake, or heading out on a day-trip to the deeper waters of the Atlantic.

But the fact is water temperatures could be well below the air temperature and an unexpected dunking as a result of a boating accident could have disastrous results…particularly if you are alone.

For example, if you are boating in Miami’s Biscayne Bay in mid-July, the water temperature will be in the mid-to-high 80s…and you can spend many hours immersed before the symptoms of hypothermia set in – plenty of time for a rescue.

But if you are boating on an inland lake or river, or off the coast of Long Island or New England, it’s an entirely different story.  In water temperatures from 70-80 degrees, exhaustion or unconsciousness can set in within 3-12 hours; 60-70 degrees, 2-7 hours, and in water from 50-60 degrees, you could be unconscious in 1-2 hours.

Once your core body temperature drops from normal 98.6 degrees to 95 degrees, your extremities are numbed to the point of uselessness – trying to fasten the straps of a life jacket or cling to an overturned boat becomes nearly impossible.  Panic and shock set in, and total disorientation can occur.  Cold water robs the body of heat considerably faster than cold air.

To guard against the potential for succumbing to hypothermia as a result of a summertime boating accident, the Coast Guard Auxiliary suggests:

     1. Know the weather conditions before you set out…don’t leave your port or dock if the weather may turn rough.

     2. File a float plan to tell your friends and family where you are going and when you plan to return.

     3. Always wear a life jacket while boating.

     4. If you wind up in the water, try not to panic as it can increase heat loss from your body and shorten your survival time…remain in a curled up, heat-retaining position.

     5. Stick with your capsized boat and try to get as much of your body out of the water as possible.

     6. Avoid consuming alcoholic beverages while boating…they allow heat to escape from the body more quickly because alcohol dilates blood vessels.

WASHINGTON- Prescription medications can bring on unwanted side effects to boaters on the water far from emergency personnel. “The marine environment exposes people to heat or cold, motion, wind, noise and other factors that can cause fatigue in anyone,” says Richard C. Lavy, M.D. The physical condition of everyone on board should be assessed before leaving the dock. Lack of shade and over exposure to the sun and heat along with ever changing sea conditions can bring on dehydration, dizziness and heat exhaustion. Drowsiness or confusion will impair the ability to operate a boat safely much like too much alcohol.

Recognize the signs of medical distress and know how to call for help. Depending on geographic area, use VHF marine channel 16 or call 911. Know before you go.

 Remember this acronym - BOAT SAFE – it stands for -

-  Bring plenty to eat and drink – avoid dehydration

-  Operate the boat in a safe and responsible manner

-  Always wear a life jacket

-  Take a boating safety course

-   Sun, wind and temperatures can be more of a factor than boaters think

-  Annual courtesy vessel safe check

-  File a float plan – leave it with someone who will take action if overdue

-  Evaluate the readiness of operating crew and passengers – it is ok to not get underway when there is doubt

 For more information go to www.uscgboating.org or for a boating safety class contact the Coast Guard Auxiliary at www.cgaux.org.

WASHINGTON —The U.S. Coast Guard’s commercial fishing vessel examination program has helped save lives since 1991, but a new federal requirement means civilian volunteers of the Coast Guard Auxiliary will soon have a bigger role in checking boats and equipment headed out to sea.

Ken Lawrenson coordinates the work of civilian, active duty Coast Guard and Coast Guard Auxiliary vessel examiners throughout Alaska. He said harvesting crab, cod and halibut from the rich fishing grounds of the North Pacific and Bering Sea is “one of the most dangerous jobs a person can have.”

Alaska has fewer than 30 qualified examiners to check about 3,800 vessels that will fall under the new requirement, and other regions face similar potential work overloads.

“I wish I had four times as many,” Lawrenson said. “We’re looking to the Auxiliary to augment the workforce.”

Vessel safety examinations have been voluntary so far, but a provision in the federal Coast Guard Authorization Act of 2010 makes them mandatory for all fishing vessels operating in U.S. waters.  The provision is expected to go into effect in late 2012.

“We’re looking at an increase in workload without the proportionate increase in resources,” Lawrenson said.

American citizens over 17 years old with experience or interest in the fishing industry can join the Coast Guard Auxiliary and help this effective program improve safety in America’s commercial fishing fleet.

Nationwide, the Auxiliary currently has 216 volunteers qualified to perform commercial fishing vessel exams, but many more are needed.

Al Morris, an Auxiliary member and former commercial fisherman in Kodiak, Alaska, recently underwent a week of intense vessel exam training in Yorktown, Va., working alongside active duty trainees.  He has seen firsthand the improved safety record of fishing boats that participate in the vessel examination program.

“I felt that I could help fishermen follow the rules,” Morris said.

MIAMI – The tragic deaths earlier this year of more than 40 Dominicans who drown when an overloaded smuggling boat capsized off the coast of the Dominican Republic have brought together the U.S. Coast Guard, the Coast Guard Auxiliary and the Miami Marlins baseball organization in a team effort to save lives.

Marilyn Fajardo, deputy public affairs officer with the Coast Guard’s 7th District public affairs office in Miami, said, “The February tragedy involving more than 60 persons in the Bay of Samana cried out for an appeal to Dominican nationals and others to stop risking their lives on the open water in search of better opportunities elsewhere.  We felt that if they could hear that message from someone they all knew about and respected, they might think twice before taking to the sea.  We believe Miami Marlins centerfielder Emilio Bonifacio, a Dominican national well known in his homeland, is just that person.”

Through the cooperative efforts of the Marlins organization, Bonifacio worked with Coast Guard and Auxiliary personnel shooting Spanish-language public service video announcements that were recently distributed to Hispanic television networks serving the Caribbean. 

“Thousands of Dominican immigrants, along with many Haitian and Cuban migrants, attempt to cross the treacherous Mona Passage to get to Puerto Rico.  The voyage to enter the United States illegally is dangerous and could cost you your life and that of your loved ones.  The Coast Guard has saved many lives, but many have been lost at sea," Bonifacio said in his message.  "Wanting a better life should not be at the risk of losing it.  Do not risk your lives…do not take to the sea.”

A Reuters news report on the tragedy said 19 other passengers on the immigrant smuggling boat were rescued and admitted to a medical center with injuries following a large scale rescue effort involving the Dominican Navy, and three helicopters and a cutter from the U.S. Coast Guard in Puerto Rico.

“Poor Dominicans in search of better opportunities often set out late at night on flimsy, overloaded boats, known as yolas, trying to cross the Mona Passage and reach the shores of Puerto Rico, but many die in the attempt.” according to Reuters.

“Migrants are risking their lives when they trust ruthless smugglers to make the dangerous voyage…without any consideration to weather conditions or the safety and lives of their passengers,” said Capt. Drew Pearson, Coast Guard Sector San Juan Commander.