HONOLULU – Coast Guard Capt. Joanna Nunan, Commander of Sector Honolulu, was relieved by Capt. Shannon Gilreath during a ceremony at Coast Guard Base Honolulu Friday.

Gilreath is a native of LaFayette, Ga. and graduated from the U.S. Coast Guard Academy in 1991 with a B.S. in Government. He received his J.D. with honors in 2001 from Tulane Law School and is a member of the bar in the state of Louisiana.

Gilreath was promoted from Sector Honolulu's deputy commander position. His previous assignments include the Coast Guard Cutter Northland, Marine Safety Office New Orleans, Eighth Coast Guard District Legal Office, Commanding Officer of Marine Safety Unit Baton Rouge, and Chief of the Prevention Law Group within the Office of Maritime and International Law at Coast Guard Headquarters.  He also served as a Senior Military Fellow at the Center for a New American Security, a non partisan think tank based in Washington, DC. 

Gilreath’s military awards include the Legion of Merit with gold star, Meritorious Service Medal, Coast Guard Commendation Medal, and the Coast Guard Achievement Medal.  He was honored by the Judge Advocate Association with the Coast Guard Outstanding Career Judge Advocate Award in 2011.

Nunan will be the new chief of staff at Force Readiness Command in Norfolk, Va. Her previous assignments include Deputy Commander of Sector San Juan, commanding officer of the Coast Guard Cutters SPAR and Ironwood and executive officer of the Basswood. 

Previous to her assignments afloat Nunan served as the Coast Guard Academy admissions officer, personnel services division chief, deputy director in the Civil Rights Directorate, military assistant to the Secretary of Transportation and as the Coast Guard Innovation Manager.

Rear Adm. Charles Ray, Commander of the Coast Guard’s 14th District, was the presiding official for the ceremony.

For more information contact the 14th District Public Affairs Office at (808) 535-3230.

HONOLULU — The Coast Guard and Hawaii County Fire Department suspended the search at sunset Thursday for a man last seen Monday night at the north end of Waipio Valley Beach on the Big Island.

Coast Guard watchstanders in the Sector Honolulu Command Center were notified of the situation at approximately 4:15 p.m., Tuesday, by the Hawaii County fire department. The report stated that a man had gone swimming off the northeast coast of the Big Island and had not been seen since Monday night. 

The Coast Guard searched with air and sea assets for the 62-year-old male John Spillane for nearly three days. The Coast Guard's search area covered over 3,750 miles. Hawaii County Fire Department's search included air, sea and shore assets as well as divers. 

The Coast Guard Sector Honolulu Command Center gathered data using self locating data marker buoys and the search and rescue optimal planning system.  To calculate search areas in the complex currents of the Hawaiian Islands, watchstanders use the SAROPS. SAROPS is a software system that uses simulated particles generated by users in a graphical interface. These particles are then influenced by environmental data to provide information on search object drift. Using information on a point of origin and local currents, it calculates the most likely area to find a person in the water.  

Allthough the Coast Guard and Hawaii County Fire Department have suspended their search, the Hawaii County Police Department will continue a missing persons investigation. Anyone with information on Spillane or his next of kin are requested to contact the Hawaii County Police Department. 

For more information contact the 14th Coast Guard District Public Affairs Office at (808) 535-3230. 

HONOLULU — The Coast Guard continues the search Thursday for a man last seen Monday night at the north end of Waipio Valley Beach on the Big Island. 

Coast Guard watchstanders in the Sector Honolulu Command Center were notified of the situation at approximately 4:15 p.m., Tuesday, by the Hawaii County fire department. The report stated that a man had gone swimming off the northeast coast of the Big Island and had not been seen since Monday night. 

The Coast Guard and Hawaii County Fire Department are currently searching with air, shore and sea assets for the 62-year-old male, John Spillane. Anyone with any information on the whereabouts of Spillane are requested to contact the Sector Honolulu Command Center at (808) 842-2600. 

For more information contact the 14th Coast Guard District Public Affairs Office at (808) 535-3230. 

HONOLULU — A mariner in distress was rescued by a container vessel in the North Pacific at 9 p.m. Monday.

The crew aboard the container vessel Kota Wangi rescued a 58-year-old Australian mariner aboard the sailing vessel Folly II. The mariner was in good condition and was transiting from California to Christmas Island, in the Republic of Kiribati, when the vessel’s autopilot reportedly failed.

After manually navigating the vessel for four weeks, he had become too fatigued to continue.

Watchstanders in Coast Guard Joint Rescue Coordination Center Honolulu received notification of the distress from a Personal Locator Beacon at approximately 6:11 a.m. Monday.

An HC-130 Hercules airplane crew from Air Station Barbers Point was launched and established communications with the mariner. A second Hercules was launched at 5 p.m. Monday to provide cover during the rescue.

The Kota Wangi is registered with the Automated Mutual-Assistance Vessel Rescue System, a network of ships whose crews volunteer to assist with rescue on the seas, helping to extend the Coast Guard’s reach in cases outside the immediate reach of response assets.

AMVER evolved into a global technology over the past century. It relies on the cooperation of commercial mariners to assist others in need. When a vessel is found to be in distress, registered AMVER vessels in the area are contacted to provide assistance. With its roots reaching back to the sinking of the Titanic in 1912, AMVER now incorporates cutting edge satellite and communication technologies as a critical lifesaving tool in the modern maritime community.

For more information contact the 14th Coast Guard District Public Affairs Office at (808) 535-3230 or visit www.amver.com/.

HONOLULU — The Coast Guard, and a ship registered with the Automated Mutual-Assistance Vessel Rescue System, are responding to a mariner in distress aboard a sailing vessel approximately 443 miles from Christmas Island, the Republic of Kiribati at 6:11 a.m., Monday.

Watchstanders in Coast Guard Joint Rescue Coordination Center Honolulu received notification of the distress from an Emergency Position Indicating Radio Beacon coming from an unnamed sailing vessel transiting from California.

The owner, a 58-year-old Australian man, reported the vessel’s autopilot failed and he has become too fatigued to continue his transit.

A crew piloting an HC-130 Hercules airplane from Air Station Barbers Point was launched and established communications with the mariner.

A 600-foot container vessel has been identified and is scheduled to conduct the rescue of the mariner Monday night.

A second Hercules crew is scheduled to launch at 5 p.m. Monday to provide cover during the rescue.

The container vessel is registered with AMVER, a network of ships whose crews volunteer to assist with rescue on the seas, helping to extend the Coast Guard’s reach in remote areas.

For more information contact the 14th Coast Guard District Public Affairs Office at (808) 535-3230.

HONOLULU — The crew aboard the sailing vessel Siesta has been located in no distress approximately 494 miles northeast of Honolulu, Sunday.

Coast Guard watchstanders in Joint Rescue Coordination Center Honolulu were contacted by the crew aboard the motor vessel Kristen Picer, a Panamanian-flagged cargo vessel, at approximately 8:55 a.m. Sunday that they had located the Siesta. The Kristen Picer crew responded to a marine broadcast and assisted the Coast Guard in locating the 44-foot sailing vessel.

The Siesta crew reported a malfunction in their satellite phone as the reason for loss of communications. The crew has an Emergency Position Indicating Radio Beacon and a Personal Locator Beacon aboard in the event of an emergency. The Siesta intends to continue on to California.

Coast Guardsmen at the Sector Honolulu command center were seeking the public’s help in re-establishing contact with the crew aboard the California-bound sailing vessel Friday night. The crew was on a 12-hour communications schedule with friends in Honolulu and hadn’t been heard from since Friday.

The Coast Guard recommends all mariners file a float plan. The plan should include the intended time of departure, the intended destination, duration of the voyage and estimated time of return. In the event a vessel does not return at the designated time, the Coast Guard can be contacted and begin a search.

"Mariners are reminded that filing a float plan with a family member or friend is highly recommended and may provide rescue crews with the essential information needed to find you if you're in distress" said Lt. Kevin Cooper, Sector Honolulu public affairs officer. "Sample float plans can be downloaded from the Coast Guard's Boating Safety Division website.”

For more information on float plans and safety visit www.uscgboating.org.

For more information contact the 14th Coast Guard District public affairs office at (808) 535-3230.  

HONOLULU — Coast Guardsmen at the Sector Honolulu command center are seeking the public’s help in re-establishing contact with the crew aboard a California-bound sailing vessel, Friday night.

No distress or injuries have been reported. Curtis Collins, the captain and owner of the 44-foot white and blue sailing vessel Siesta, was last reported to be en route to California. The crew was scheduled to be on a 12-hour communications schedule with friends in Honolulu.

Anybody who has been in contact with the Siesta crew is urged to contact the Sector Honolulu command center at 808-842-2600 or VHF Channel 16.

Editor's note: for high resolution images click the thumbnails above.

HONOLULU – Rep. Tulsi Gabbard met with the U.S. Coast Guard on Oahu and conducted a tour of Honolulu Harbor, Friday.

Rear Adm. Charles W. Ray, 14th Coast Guard District commander, hosted the tour and provided Gabbard an up close look at Coast Guard operations in and around the Port of Honolulu. Gabbard received a briefing at the Coast Guard Sector Honolulu command center where she observed how the Coast Guard conducts search and rescue cases, responds to pollution incidents and maintains a law enforcement presence. She also visited the Coast Guard Cutters Morgenthau and Kukui where she spoke with the commanding officers and crew about their missions in Hawaii and throughout the Pacific.

HONOLULU — The Coast Guard has suspended the search for a missing mariner who fell overboard from a sailing vessel in the North Pacific early Sunday.

The search for Luke Stimson was suspended at 9 a.m. Tuesday pending any further developments. Coast Guard and U.S. Navy crews searched approximately 2,340 square miles in a search area 575 miles west of Midway Atoll. Coast Guard and Navy crews searched a total of 50 hours over the course of three days.

Coast Guard watchstanders in Joint Rescue Coordination Center Honolulu were notified by Marine Rescue Coordination Center Falmouth, United Kingdom, that Stimson, one of the two-person crew, had fallen overboard from the 38-foot sailing vessel Jonetsu. Stimson was reportedly wearing a yellow lifejacket and was conscious when he fell into the water. The second crewmember, Laura Vernon, incorrectly identified previously as Laura Beinon, did not have enough sailing experience to safely navigate the vessel alone. 

The U.S. Navy warship Peleliu (LHA 5), a Tarawa-Class amphibious assault ship, was diverted from their homeward bound transit to assist in the search. The Peleliu deployed two MH-60 helicopters at approximately 5 a.m. Sunday to conduct search patterns. One MH-60 helicopter located the sailing vessel and conducted a basket hoist to rescue Vernon at approximately 12 p.m. Sunday. She was taken safely to the Peleliu with no reported injuries.

Two Coast Guard HC-130 Hercules airplane crews from Air Station Barbers Point, Oahu, alternated searches from Midway Atoll and Wake Island throughout Sunday, Sunday night and Monday. During Sunday night, two Navy MH-60 helicopters and two CH-46 helicopters conducted six more searches of the area. 

“We offer our thoughts and prayers to the Stimson and Vernon families during this difficult time,” said Jennifer Conklin, a JRCC Honolulu search and rescue specialist. “Suspending a search is never an easy decision, nor is it one that is made quickly.”

For more information contact the Coast Guard’s 14th District Public Affairs Office at (808) 535-3230.

HONOLULU - The Coast Guard and U.S. Navy continue the search Monday for a man who fell overboard from a sailing vessel in the North Pacific early Sunday.

The Coast Guard Joint Rescue Coordination Center in Honolulu was notified by Marine Rescue Coordination Center Falmouth, United Kingdom, that Luke Stinson, one of the two person crew, had fallen overboard from the 38-foot sailing vessel Jonetsu. Stinson was reportedly wearing a yellow lifejacket with a light beacon and conscious when he fell into the water. The second crewmember, Laura Beinon, did not have enough sailing experience to safely navigate the vessel alone.  

The U.S. Navy warship Peleliu (LHA 5), a Tarawa Class amphibious assault ship, was diverted from their homeward bound transit to assist in the search. Peleliu deployed two MH-60 helicopters at approximately 5 a.m. Sunday to conduct search patterns. One MH-60 helicopter located the sailing vessel and conducted a basket hoist to remove Beinon and return her safely to Peleliu with no reported injuries.

“The world’s maritime community lives by a tradition of rendering assistance to mariners in distress,” said Adm. Charles Ray, Commander of the Coast Guard’s 14th District. “The level of cooperation from the U.S. Navy has been unprecedented. I want to thank the crew of the USS Peleliu for diverting from their regular duties and honoring this tradition with the swift rescue of Laura Beinon, and ongoing search for Luke Stinson.”

The search for Stinson continues. Two Coast Guard HC-130 Hercules airplane crews from Air Station Barbers Point, Oahu, alternated searches from Midway Atoll and Wake Island throughout Sunday, Sunday night and Monday. During Sunday night, two U.S. Navy MH-60 helicopters and two CH-46 helicopters conducted six more searches of the area.

The Joint Rescue Coordination Center in Honolulu is using the Search and Rescue Optimal Planning System to identify search areas. SAROPS is a software system that uses simulated particles generated by users in a graphical interface which are influenced by environmental data to provide information on drift.

“Our hearts go out to the family and friends of Luke Stinson in this difficult time,” said Ray. “Our crews remain vigilant and thorough in their continued search.”   

On scene weather conditions in the search area for Monday are clear visibility, four foot seas and 10 mph winds.  

For more information contact the Coast Guard’s 14th District Public Affairs Office at (808) 535-3230.