ASTORIA, Ore. – A U.S. Coast Guard aircrew and members of the Wahkiakum County Sheriff’s Office assisted a man and two dogs aboard a disabled vessel near Skamokawa, Wash., Wednesday morning.

The man was fishing near Steamboat Slough when his 19-foot boat suffered an engine casualty and became disabled; no injuries were reported.

The man’s wife contacted authorities at about 9:43 a.m., alerting them that he had contacted her using a cellular phone, and that he had run out of fuel. He had no other communications device.

A Coast Guard aircrew, aboard an MH-60 Jayhawk Helicopter from Air Station Astoria and already flying in the area conducting training, located the man at 10:43 a.m. The aircrew was able to direct a Wahkiakum County Sheriff’s Office boatcrew to the area. The boatcrew is towing the disabled vessel to Cathlamet Marina in Cathlamet, Wash.

While many boaters rely on cell phones for emergency communications on the water, the Coast Guard recommends that all boaters carry VHF-FM radios, which are more reliable in the maritime environment and work in areas where cell phone signals may be limited or nonexistent.

For more information contact Coast Guard Public Affairs at 503-861-6132.

MIAMI — Lt. Justin M. Matejka will relieve Cmdr. Herbert H. Eggert as commanding officer of the Coast Guard Cutter Bernard C. Webber during a formal ceremony at Coast Guard Base Miami Beach,  Friday at 10 a.m.

Eggert has commanded the 154-foot Bernard C. Webber since July 2010. Eggert's next assignment will be at the Office of Law Enforcement in Washington, DC.

Matejka is reporting to the Bernard C. Webber after being the commanding officer of the Coast Guard Cutter Baranof. He commanded the Baranof forward deployed at Patrol Forces Southwest Asia at Manama, Bahrain in support of the U.S. Naval Forces Central Command  and Operation Enduring Freedom since April 2012.

Matejka is a 2005 graduate of the Coast Guard Academy, earning a Bachelor of Science degree in Electrical Engineering and Software Design.  His afloat career began as an engineer officer in training aboard Coast Guard Cutter Thetis in Key West, Fla., while serving as damage control assistant, a deck watch officer and boarding officer.  Following tours included serving as the executive officer aboard Coast Guard Cutter Tempest and Coast Guard Cutter Zephyr in Pascagoula, Miss., from 2007 to 2009. Matejka was assigned to the Seventh District Command Center as a command duty officer in Miami from 2009 to 2012.

His personal awards include two Coast Guard Commendation Medals, the Navy/Marine Corp Commendation Medal, the Coast Guard Achievement Medal, and a Commandant’s Letters of Commendation.

Matejka is a native of Florida, and is married to the former Ashley Pfenning.  They have one child, Callen.

Media interested in attending the ceremony should R.S.V.P. to Ensign Stacy Smith at stacy.l.smith@uscg.mil no later than Thursday.

Please see the June 18 media advisory for this event to obtain photos and video from the cutter's arrival in Cleveland earlier this week.

Members of the official party unveil the new brow dodger for Coast Guard Cutter Morro Bay during the official welcoming ceremony held at the Cleveland Moorings Facility June 19, 2013. Centered from left to right are: Lt. Cmdr. Ben Keffer, commanding officer of Coast Guard Cutter Morro Bay; Rear Adm. Mike Parks, commander of the Coast Guard 9th District; and Cleveland Mayor Frank Jackson. U.S. Coast Guard photo by Petty Officer 3rd Class Christopher M. Yaw		Crest of Coast Guard Cutter Morro Bay, with updated homeport information.

CLEVELAND — The Coast Guard 9th District welcomed a new addition to the service's Great Lakes cutter fleet during a ceremony Wednesday at the Coast Guard's Cleveland Moorings facility.

Rear Adm. Michael Parks, Coast Guard 9th District commander, Cleveland Mayor Frank Jackson, and other local and military agency representatives were on hand to welcome the ship and 17 crewmembers to their new homeport.

"She's pretty unique, but a constant has always been operational excellence, and my crew and I look forward to continuing that tradition in the Great Lakes," said Lt. Cmdr. Ben Keffer, the commanding officer of Coast Guard Cutter Morro Bay. "As an Ohio native, there's no better place to be than Cleveland."

Cutter Morro Bay was commissioned in 1981, homeported in Yorktown, Va., and operated mainly on the Chesapeake Bay, until its decommissioning in 1998. However, after the 9/11 attacks, the Coast Guard wanted more resources in the Northeast for security operations and brought the ship back to service. The Coast Guard shifted its homeport to New London, where the vessel fell under the operational control of the Coast Guard 1st District.

For the past several winters, the Coast Guard has temporarily assigned one of the 1st District's Bay Class ice-breaking tugs to the Great Lakes to assist the 9th District's crews with domestic ice-breaking operations. However, these seasonal deployments were not ideal due to the high cost, the operational hours lost in transit, and the toll on personal lives of the crewmembers and their families.

The Coast Guard conducted a mission analysis in March 2011 to consider such things as search-and-rescue readiness, distribution of workload on ice-breaking assets, and overall readiness and maintenance of the cutter fleet. That study determined Lake Erie to be the best fit for a homeport. A feasibility study conducted later determined the Coast Guard-owned Cleveland Moorings facility to be the best location for the ship's homeport, where it will join Coast Guard Cutter Neah Bay as the eastern-most ice-breaking cutters in the Great Lakes. There are no Coast Guard icebreakers homeported in Lake Ontario.

The crew of cutter Morro Bay will serve across the Great Lakes region, contributing to Operations Taconite and Coal Shovel, the nation's largest domestic ice-breaking operations. During the winter months, the 9th District's fleet of cutters provides ice-breaking services for search and rescue, other emergency operations, flood mitigation, and the facilitation of navigation to meet the reasonable demands of commerce. During the summer months, the cutters are still available to aid in search and rescue and other emergency operations.

The crew of Coast Guard Cutter Morro Bay, a 140-foot ice-breaking tug formerly homeported in New London, Conn., moored the ship at its new homeport at the Cleveland Moorings on Sunday.

Lt. Cmdr. Ben Keffer, commanding officer of Coast Guard Cutter Morro Bay, speaks with the media following a welcoming ceremony at the Cleveland Moorings Facility June 19, 2013. Keffer, the cutter and its crew were officially welcomed into the Coast Guard 9th District. U.S. Coast Guard photo by Petty Officer 3rd Class Christopher M. Yaw		Lt. Cmdr. Ben Keffer, commanding officer of Coast Guard Cutter Morro Bay, stands with Cleveland Mayor Frank Jackson and Rear Adm. Mike Parks, commander of the Coast Guard 9th District, at the Cleveland Moorings Facility June 19, 2013 following a welcoming ceremony for the cutter. Morro Bay has officially been transferred to the Coast Guard 9th District from the Coast Guard 1st District. U.S. Coast Guard photo by Petty Officer 3rd Class Christopher M. Yaw

JUNEAU, Alaska – The Coast Guard suspended the active search for a 25-year-old man who went overboard from the fishing vessel Swift near Porpoise Island 40 miles west of Juneau, late Tuesday night. 

Coast Guard Air Station Sitka MH-60 Jayhawk helicopter crews, Station Juneau 45-foot Response Boat-Medium crews, the Coast Guard Cutter Liberty crew, National Park Service boat crews and Civil Air Patrol airplane crews conducted multiple searches totaling 34 hours between them and covering more than 450 square miles in the vicinity of the island and Icy Strait throughout the day.

“Suspending a case is one of the hardest decisions that we as search and rescuers have to make and our thoughts and prayers are with the family,” said Lt. Ryan Erickson, a search and rescue controller with Coast Guard Sector Juneau. 

Alaska State Troopers and the SARDOGS have been called in to search the underwater area between the anchored vessel and the beach for the crewman.

Coast Guard Sector Juneau command center watchstanders received a relayed report of distress from the crew of the 57-foot Auke Bay-based fishing vessel Pacific Horizon just after midnight Tuesday. The Pacific Horizon crew had rendezvoused with the 34-foot Juneau-based Swift, found no one aboard and notified the Coast Guard prompting the search for the Swift’s crew.

A Station Juneau boat crew located the master, mildly hypothermic, near his overturned skiff on the beach Tuesday morning. He was hoisted by a Jayhawk helicopter crew and safely transported to emergency medical personnel in Juneau.

After his rescue, the master of the vessel reported the man had gone overboard without a life jacket and became distressed. The master launched his skiff to assist but saw no sign of the crewman, became distressed himself, and required Coast Guard assistance.

Weather on scene during the search was reportedly light winds, and calm seas becoming two-foot seas with a water temperature of 60 degrees in the morning dropping to 57 degrees Fahrenheit by evening.

The Coast Guard and Alaska State Troopers are collaborating and sharing information on the incident to track fishing vessel casualty circumstances and mitigate future occurrences.

WHO: The crew of Coast Guard Station Oak Island, N.C.

WHAT:  Hosting a change-of-command ceremony

WHEN: 11 a.m. Friday.  Media should arrive by 10:30 a.m.

WHERE: Coast Guard Station Oak Island, 300 Caswell Beach Rd., Caswell Beach, NC 28465

OAK ISLAND, N.C. — The crew of Coast Guard Station Oak Island is scheduled to hold a change-of-command ceremony on the station's grounds in Caswell Beach, Friday at 10:30 a.m. 

Senior Chief Petty Officer Mark Kannan will assume command of the station from Senior Chief Petty Officer Newman "Bon" Cantrell Jr. who served as the officer in charge since August 2009.

As officer in charge of Station Oak Island, Kannan will oversee 42 active duty members and 23 reserve members while they perform core Coast Guard missions such as search and rescue, recreational boating safety, law enforcement and marine environmental protection.  

Capt. Anthony Popiel, commander of Coast Guard Sector North Carolina, will preside over the ceremony.

The change-of-command ceremony is a time-honored tradition and formal custom that follows military protocol, designed to strengthen the respect for the continuity of command.

Coast Guard District 17 Commander, Rear Adm. Thomas Ostebo, adresses senior tribal, local, federal, state and industry leaders during the Arctic Spill of National Significance seminar June 18, 2013, in Anchorage, Alaska.

A Spill of National Significance is a spill that, due to size, location actual or potential impact on the environment or the necessary response effort, is so complex it requires extraordinary coordination of federal, state, local and responsible party resources to contain and clean up the discharge.

U.S. Coast Guard photo by Petty Officer 1st Class Shawn Eggert.

Coast Guard Sector Anchorage Commander, Capt. Paul Mehler, adresses senior tribal, local, federal, state and industry leaders during the Arctic Spill of National Significance seminar June 18, 2013, in Anchorage, Alaska.

The Arctic SONS seminar served to validate and improve the effectiveness of response plans as well as to explore and describe potential opportunities for improvement in preparedness and response to a massive spill in the Arctic.

U.S. Coast Guard photo by Petty Officer 1st Class Shawn Eggert.

CLEVELAND — The Coast Guard continues investigating an unknown film Tuesday that was reported in southern Lake Michigan one day earlier.

About 3 p.m. Monday, a communications watchstander at Coast Guard Station Michigan City, Ind., was notified of an unknown film in the water near Porter Beach, Ind. The station directed the reporting source to contact the National Response Center.

Coast Guard Marine Safety Unit Chicago dispatched a response boat to the area, and pollution investigators found no visible film.

A helicopter crew from Coast Guard Air Station Traverse City, Mich., was diverted from a training mission to conduct an overflight of the area from the Port of Indiana to Michigan City, Ind., and found no evidence of film. They did see a few pollen blooms.

The U.S. Geological Survey has taken water samples, and the results are pending.

Just after 4 p.m., Station Michigan City received a report that the film had reached Michigan City.

"At this point, the Indiana Department of Environmental Management is conducting a more thorough analysis of samples taken to determine what the actual materials are," said Petty Officer 1st Class Jeremy Thomas, a pollution investigator at MSU Chicago. "Preliminary results indicate it was not petroleum-based material, and an investigation is being conducted to determine the source."

Personnel from MSU Chicago is currently investigating, and they have found no sign of the film. Coast Guard investigators have reviewed a weeks worth of video from the Port of Indiana and have ruled out the port as a possible source. They have also ruled out the steel company ArcelorMittal as a source. The cause of the film remains under investigation, and the Coast Guard is working diligently alongside partner agencies, such as the USGS and IDEM, to determine any causative factors to see if there is anything that can be done to prevent similar occurrences.

MIAMI – The Coast Guard reminds boaters the importance of carrying life-saving communication and emergency distress equipment aboard their vessels.

While many boaters rely on cell phones for emergency communications on the water, VHF-FM radios are much more reliable in the marine environment and work in areas where cell phones sometimes don’t.  When a mayday is broadcast over channel FM Channel 16, the international hailing and distress frequency, multiple response agencies and other nearby boaters can hear the distress call and offer immediate assistance.

The Coast Guard also highly recommends all mariners equip their boats with Emergency Position Indicating Radio Beacons and/or their life jackets with Personal Emergency Position Indicating Radio Beacons.

“EPIRBs and PEPIRBs are absolutely invaluable during emergencies because they instantly alert responders to your distress, provide a precise GPS location and give a description of your vessel when they’re properly registered,” said Capt. Todd Lutes, chief of incident management for the Seventh Coast Guard District. “If your boat capsizes or you fall overboard and can’t get to your radio, these small, relatively inexpensive pieces of equipment, along with your life jacket, can be the difference between living and dying.”

EPIRBs and PEPIRBs may be activated manually by the push of a button or automatically when they enter the water, depending on the model.

In 2012, registered EPIRBs and PEPIRBs were directly responsible for 67 lives saved in the Seventh Coast Guard District.Additionally, in accordance with federal law, recreational boats 16 feet and longer are required to carry visual distress signals such as flares, smoke signals or non-pyrotechnic devices, and vessels 12 meters or longer are required to carry sound-producing devices such as whistles, bells and gongs. State and local laws may require additional safety equipment.

Federal requirements can be found in the brochure A Boater’s Guide to the Federal Requirements for Recreational Boats.

NEW YORK – The crew of Coast Guard Station Eatons Neck is scheduled to hold a
change of command ceremony in Northport, N.Y., Thursday.

Who: Capt. Joseph Vojvodich, commander, Coast Guard Sector Long Island Sound,
Chief Warrant Officer Steve Pollack, current commanding officer, and Chief Warrant
Officer Mark Stauffer, prospective commanding officer.

What: Coast Guard Station Eatons Neck change of command ceremony.
The change of command ceremony is a time-honored tradition, which formally restates
that the continuity of command will be maintained. It is a formal ritual, conducted before
the assembled company of the command. It conveys to the officers, enlisted personnel,
civilian employees, and auxiliarist of the Coast Guard that although the authority of
command is relinquished by one person and is assumed by another, it is still maintained
without interruption.

When: Thursday, June 20, 2013 at 11 a.m.

Where: U.S. Coast Guard Station Eatons Neck,
              12 Lighthouse Road
              Northport, N.Y. 11768

**Media interested in attending this event are asked to arrive at the unit no later than
10:30 a.m. Pollack and Stauffer will be available for interviews immediately following
the ceremony. Please contact Coast Guard Public Affairs Detachment New York for any
other information at (212) 668-7114.**

EDITOR'S NOTE: CLICK ON THUMBNAILS FOR HIGH RESOLUTION PHOTOS.

SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico – The Coast Guard, Royal Netherlands Navy and U.S. law enforcement partners seized 1,517 pounds of cocaine, a go-fast vessel and detained three Dominican smugglers, during an at-sea interdiction June 11, 2013 in the Caribbean Sea.

The drug shipment is estimated to have a wholesale value of more than $24 million dollars.

The interdiction was a result of an international multi-agency law enforcement effort in support of Operation Unified Resolve, Operation Caribbean Guard and the Caribbean Corridor Strike Force.

The crew of a patrolling Coast Guard Air Station Miami HC-144 Ocean Sentry marine surveillance aircraft detected during the afternoon of June 11, 2013, three men aboard a suspicious go-fast vessel loitering, approximately 105 nautical miles south southeast of Ponce, Puerto Rico.   A Coast Guard HC-144 Ocean Sentry and HC-130 Hercules along with a U.S. Customs and Border Protection P-3 fixed-wing aircraft maintained surveillance as Coast Guard watchstanders in Sector San Juan diverted the Coast Guard Cutter Sapelo to interdict the suspect vessel.  The Royal Netherlands Navy HNLMS Holland Offshore Patrol Vessel, on patrol in the Caribbean Sea with a U.S. Coast Guard Law Enforcement Detachment (LEDET) onboard, also responded upon being alerted.

The HNLMS Holland arrived on scene with the suspect vessel, launched their high-speed pursuit boats to interdict the go-fast.  Upon being detected, the suspected smugglers began to flee the area at a high rate of speed and jettisoned multiple bales of suspected contraband overboard.  With the HNLMS Holland’s boats in pursuit, the smugglers came to a full stop.  The U.S. Coast Guard LEDET proceeded to board the suspect vessel and detain the three men onboard.

The Sapelo arrived on-scene shortly thereafter and began searching alongside the HNLMS Holland, with aerial support from Air Station Miami HC-144 Ocean Sentry, Air Station Clearwater C-130, and Air Station Borinquen MH-65 Dolphin aircrafts, to find the bales of contraband that had been jettisoned into the water.

The HNLMS Holland initially located and recovered seven of the jettisoned bales from the water.  The crew of the Air Station Miami HC-144 Ocean Sentry located 13 additional bales and vectored in the HNLMS Holland to recover 11 of the bales, and the Sapelo, to recover the remaining two.  In total, 20 bales of contraband were seized weighing over 1,517 pounds.

The crew of the Sapelo and HNLMS Holland conducted field tests which revealed the suspected contraband to be cocaine.

The Coast Guard LEDET transferred the detainees and the HNLMS Holland transferred the bales of contraband to the Sapelo for transport to Puerto Rico, while the suspect vessel was destroyed as a hazard to navigation.

The Sapelo transferred the detainees and the cocaine shipment to awaiting Customs and Border Protection officers and Immigrations and Customs Enforcement (ICE) special agents in Ponce, Puerto Rico June 13, 2013.  ICE-Homeland Security Investigations is leading a criminal investigation into this case.

"Our local, federal and international partnerships are making a difference to stem the flow of drugs into Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands as far as possible and bring those responsible to justice,” said Coast Guard Capt. Drew Pearson, Sector San Juan commander. “Our commitment and resolve to protect our coasts and the citizens of Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands from the threats that come from the sea is unwavering.”

“These arrests and multi-kilogram seizure are a clear indication of the success of the Caribbean Corridor Strike Force Initiative,” said Rosa Emilia Rodríguez-Vélez, U.S. Attorney for the District of Puerto Rico.  “We will continue maximizing all of our combined resources to investigate and prosecute those who in flagrant disregard of our laws and way of life try to smuggle illegal contraband into our area of jurisdiction.” 

“This recent interdiction shows again that cooperation at sea is extremely important for counter-drug operations”, said Cmdr. RNLN Chris van den Berg, commanding officer of HNLMS Holland. “Not only interagency cooperation between the U.S. Coast Guard and the Royal Netherlands Navy, but also multinational cooperation between the United States and the Kingdom of the Netherlands. Together we can make a difference”

Since May 21, 2012, the Coast Guard has seized, under Operation Unified Resolve, in partnership with regional law enforcement authorities in the Caribbean, 31,400 pounds of cocaine and 8,500 pounds of marijuana during 18 law enforcement interdictions. The wholesale value for these seizures is worth over $387,500,000 million dollars. 

The Coast Guard’s efforts under Operation Unified Resolve contribute to the interagency results being achieved each and every day locally under Operation Caribbean Guard, which coordinates efforts between the Coast Guard, its DHS, Commonwealth and Territorial law enforcement partners, who are working diligently to deter detect, and disrupt illicit maritime trafficking to Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands.

CCSF is an initiative of the U.S. Attorney's Office created to disrupt and dismantle major drug trafficking organizations operating in the Caribbean. CCSF is part of the High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area (HIDTA) and Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF) that investigates South American-based drug trafficking organizations responsible for the movement of multi-kilogram quantities of narcotics using the Caribbean as a transshipment point for further distribution to the United States. The initiative is composed of HSI, the U.S. Attorney for the District of Puerto Rico, Drug Enforcement Administration, FBI, the Coast Guard, CBP and PRPD's Joint Forces for Rapid Action.

The Coast Guard Cutter Sapelo is a 110-foot island class patrol boat homeported in San Juan, Puerto Rico. 

Deputy Commissioner Craig Callens, commander of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police "E" Division, and Rear Adm. Keith A. Taylor, commander of the 13th Coast Guard District, sign the finalized Shiprider agreement during a ceremony held at the Peace Arch Provincial Park in British Columbia, Canada, June 17, 2013. Shiprider is a formal, regional standard operating procedure that allows members of both organizations to coordinate joint law enforcement operations in shared waterways. (U.S. Coast Guard photo by Petty Officer 3rd Class Katelyn Tyson/Released)

Canadian Consul General Dennis Stevens thanks Craig Callens, deputy commissioner of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police "E" Division, and Rear Adm. Keith A. Taylor, commander of the 13th Coast Guard District, for their efforts in formalizing the Shiprider agreement during a signing ceremony at the Peace Arch Provincial Park in British Columbia, Canada, June 17, 2013. Shiprider is a formal, regional standard operating procedure that allows members of both organizations to coordinate joint law enforcement operations in shared waterways. (U.S. Coast Guard photo by Petty Officer 3rd Class Katelyn Tyson/Released)

United States Deputy Consul General Joe Salazar speaks to a group of representatives from the U.S. Coast Guard 13th District and the Royal Canadian Mounted Police "E" Division during a signing ceremony for the Shiprider agreement. Shiprider is a formal, regional standard operating procedure that allows members of both organizations to coordinate joint law enforcement operations in shared waterways. (U.S. Coast Guard photo by Petty Officer 3rd Class Katelyn Tyson/Released)

SEATTLE--The Coast Guard 13th District and the Royal Canadian Mounted Police "E" Division signed a finalized agreement for the Pacific region Integrated Cross-border Maritime Law Enforcement program, known as Shiprider, during a ceremony at the Peace Arch Provincial Park in British Columbia, Canada, Monday.

Shiprider is a program that enables specially-trained officials from both nations to pursue or interdict suspected criminals transiting across the shared maritime border.

The two signatories of the regional program were Rear Adm. Keith A. Taylor, commander of the Coast Guard 13th District, and Deputy Commissioner Craig Callens, commander of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police "E" Division.

"This signing represents a more formal finalization of the collaboration between the RCMP and the United States Coast Guard," said Callens. "It is the culmination of tireless efforts of those who have advanced the concept of Shiprider."

The concept of Shiprider was first introduced in 2005. A version of the agreement proved successful during the Winter Olympic Games in Vancouver, British Columbia, in 2010.

"I am very proud of the men and women of the RCMP and U.S. Coast Guard who serve on the Shiprider boats today, tomorrow, next week, next month and next year," said Taylor. "They collectively protect our shared maritime border."

View photos of the Shiprider training in action

For more information, contact the Coast Guard 13th district public affairs office at (206) 220-7237.

PORTSMOUTH, Va. — The crew of Coast Guard Station Wrightsville Beach accepted delivery of the station's newest asset, a 45-foot Response Boat - Medium, Tuesday, which represents the 126th boat in a fleet of 170 being delivered to the service.

The RB-M will replace the aging fleet of 41-foot Utility Boats (UTB) and assorted non-standard boats being used at Coast Guard stations throughout the country.

The UTB has been a workhorse at Coast Guard stations for more than 25 years, but newer boats with increased capabilities are needed.

The RB-M's top speed of 49 miles per hour gets the boat’s crew to the scene faster and reduces crew fatigue. The new design includes a full cabin to protect the crew from the elements, provides heating and air conditioning and features shock-mitigating seats.

The RB-M is more maneuverable, can accommodate light machine guns and its propulsion system complies with EPA and International Maritime Organization emissions standards. It boasts an advanced navigation system and a communication system able to interact with other federal, state, local and homeland security partners.

The RB-M is a multi-mission boat that can operate in coastal zones including inshore and inland waterways and open ocean out to 50 nautical miles. Primary missions for the RB-M include search and rescue; ports, waterways and coastal security; defense readiness and marine environmental protection.

Station Wrightsville Beach’s RB-M is number 126 of approximately 170 boats being delivered to the Coast Guard during a period of eight to 10 years, half of which is being built in Kent, Wash., by Marinette Marine Corporation’s major subcontractor, Kvichak Marine Industries of Seattle, Wash. MMC is building the other half of the fleet in Green Bay, Wis.

For more information on the RB-M, visit http://www.uscg.mil/acquisition/rbm.

Station Wrightsville Beach's crew is currently training on the RB-M in order to get qualified on the new boat. A media availability may be scheduled once the crew completes their qualifications.

CLEVELAND — The Coast Guard is investigating a sheen Tuesday that was reported in southern Lake Michigan one day earlier.

About 3 p.m. Monday, a communications watchstander at Coast Guard Station Michigan City, Ind., was notified that people were coming out the water with an oily substance on them at Porter Beach, Ind.

The station directed the reporting source to contact the National Response Center.

Coast Guard Marine Safety Unit Chicago dispatched a response boat to the area, and pollution investigators found no visible sheen.

A helicopter crew from Coast Guard Air Station Traverse City, Mich., was diverted from a training mission to conduct an overflight of the area from the Port of Indiana to Michigan City, Ind., and found no evidence of sheen. They did see a few pollen blooms.

The U.S. Geological Survey has taken water samples, and the results are pending.

Just after 4 p.m., Station Michigan City received a report that the sheen had reached Michigan City.

MSU Chicago is currently on scene investigating, and they have found no sign of sheen. Coast Guard investigators are also reviewing a surveillance video provided by the Port of Indiana and have not noticed any signs of pollution.

The cause of the sheen remains under investigation, and the Coast Guard is working diligently alongside partner agencies to determine any causative factors to see if there is anything that can be done to prevent similar occurrences.

MIAMI - Two jet skiers were rescued out the water by a Coast Guard smallboat crew in the vicinity of Man of War Harbor, Fla., Monday.

Coast Guard Sector Key West watchstanders received notification that two jet skiers, one male and one female, allided with channel marker two in Man of War Harbor resulting in the two individuals falling in the water and in distress.

Coast Guard watchstanders quickly launched a smallboat crew from Coast Guard Station Key West. Upon the rescue crew arriving, one of the Coast Guardsmen entered the water to assist the injured woman into a stokes litter. The male jet skier was able to get on the Coast Guard vessel with minimal assistance.

The survivors were transferred to Coast Guard Station Key West where local emergency medical services were waiting to take them to Lower Keys Medical Center.

Both jet skiers were wearing life jackets.

"Wearing a life jacket while on the water not only raises your chances of survival in a worst case scenario but also allows responders more time to arrive on scene to rescue those in distress," said Chief Petty Officer Luis Negron, search and rescue duty officer.

The Coast Guard urges boaters to safely operate their vessel and check their equipment prior to heading on the water. Knowing how to use the required safety equipment and wearing a Coast Guard approved lifejacket can save your life in the event of an emergency.

NEW ORLEANS — The Coast Guard has suspended the search for an overdue diver 55 miles offshore Grand Isle, Monday.

Missing is Tim Raines, 56.

At approximately 10:30 a.m., watchstanders at Coast Guard Sector New Orleans received a relay on VHF-FM radio from the vessel Early Life Crisis reporting a diver who was overdue by 30 minutes. 

Since the search commenced Saturday evening, the Coast Guard has searched a 5,680 square-mile area more than 82 hours with the following assets:

Seven MH-65 Dolphin helicopters and crews from Coast Guard Air Station New Orleans;

Five  HC-144 Ocean Sentry aircraft and crews from Coast Guard Aviation Training Center Mobile, Ala.;

A 45-foot Response Boat — Medium and crew from Coast Guard Station Grand Isle;

The Coast Guard Cutter Sturgeon and crew;

The Coast Guard Cutter Pelican and crew.

"We coordinated and planned extensive search operations attempting to locate Mr. Raines; searching more than 5,680 miles over the course of three days. Unfortunately, we were unable to locate Mr. Raines despite our best efforts," said  Lt. Josiah Starr, command duty officer at Sector New Orleans.  "Our hearts and prayers go out to the his family."

The search is suspended pending further developments.

JUNEAU, Alaska — The Coast Guard is searching for a mariner who went overboard from the fishing vessel Swift in Icy Strait, 40 miles west of Juneau, Tuesday morning.

A Coast Guard Air Station Sitka MH-60 Jayhawk helicopter crew and a Station Juneau 45-foot Response Boat-Medium crew are searching for the second member of two person crew from the 34-foot fishing vessel Swift. The Coast Guard Cutter Liberty is en route from Auke Bay to assist in the search. 

Coast Guard Sector Juneau command center watchstanders received a relayed report of distress from the crew of the 57-foot fishing vessel Pacific Horizon just after midnight. The Pacific Horizon crew had rendezvoused with the Swift, found no one aboard and notified the Coast Guard. Command center watchstanders immediately issued an urgent marine information broadcast requesting the assistance of mariners in the area to locate the two crewmembers and directed the launch of the Coast Guard assets.

One of the crewmen was located mildly hypothermic by the Coast Guard boatcrew near his overturned skiff on a beach. He was hoisted aboard the Coast Guard Jayhawk helicopter and transported to emergency medical personnel in Juneau.

"Our highest priority is locating the missing crewmember," said Petty Officer 1st Class Wes Shipley, a watchstander at the Sector Juneau command center. "We are using both surface and air assets to thoroughly search the area where the mariner went missing."

The missing man is reportedly wearing a gray, hooded sweatshirt and black rain pants. Weather on scene is reportedly light winds, calm seas and a water temperature of 60 degrees Fahrenheit. The Swift is reportedly homeported in Juneau and the Pacific Horizon is homeported in Auke Bay.

KODIAK, Alaska — Coast Guard Fire and Rescue responded to a vehicle fire on West Rezanof Drive near Coast Guard Base Kodiak Monday. 

Personnel with the department put out the fire and verified the single occupant of the vehicle was uninjured. The vehicle, a late model pickup truck, will be towed from the site to a shop or private property for repair or disposal by the owner.

Coast Guard personnel at the base gate were notified by the driver of the vehicle that the truck was on fire just down the road from the gate. The driver and a friend who arrived to the scene knocked down the initial flames with an extinguisher he carried aboard the truck but were unable to put the fire out completely. Coast Guard Police Department personnel dispatched Coast Guard Fire and Rescue to the scene to prevent injuries to the public or damage to federal property.

Upon arrival the fire crews knocked down the flames with water, used thermal scanners to detect hot spots not visible to the naked eye and put the fire out fully using foam. Coast Guard Police Department personnel closed West Rezanof Drive to traffic during the response for the safety of the fire crews and the public. 

“We are glad that there were no injuries in this incident and the driver reported it before the fire got worse,” said Mike McDonnell, deputy chief, Coast Guard Fire and Rescue. “We regularly respond to vehicle accidents and fires along the state highway that passes through Coast Guard property. We also have a memorandum of understanding with the City of Kodiak and the borough’s two volunteer fire departments to manage fire and rescue on Coast Guard property and assist their departments off Coast Guard property as needed.” 

While vehicle fires are rare, Coast Guard Fire and Rescue responded to two vehicle accidents in the area in the last week. They also provide land-based search and rescue response, structural, wild land and aircraft fire response for the Coast Guard base and state airport in addition to conducting a proactive fire prevention program on the base and in Coast Guard housing areas.   

“With this dry weather, fires can quickly get out of hand,” said Jeff Halcomb, fire chief, Coast Guard Fire and Rescue. “We are encouraging people to use caution and have contingency plans when their activities involve fire. Be safe and enjoy the weather but be sure to follow borough and city rules regarding open burning.”

BALTIMORE — Chief Petty Officer Tracy Randall is scheduled to assume command of the Coast Guard Cutter Chock and its crew during a change-of-command ceremony Friday at 10 a.m. at the Coast Guard Yard in Baltimore.

Randall will become the cutter’s first female officer-in-charge since the cutter’s commissioning in 1962.

Randall will relieve Senior Chief Petty Officer Brian Kuhar, who has served as the cutter’s officer-in-charge since June 2010. Kuhar will become the executive petty officer of the Coast Guard Cutter Frank Drew homeported in Portsmouth, Va.    

As the cutter’s officer-in-charge, Randall will oversee a seven-person crew responsible for conducting a multitude of missions, including law enforcement, aids to navigation, ice breaking and maritime safety patrols throughout the Chesapeake Bay region.

Randall recently served as the executive petty officer at Coast Guard Station Key West, Fla.

Capt. Kevin Kiefer, the commanding officer of Coast Guard Sector Baltimore, will preside over the ceremony.

The Chock is a 65-foot Small Harbor Tug homeported at the Coast Guard Yard and works under the operational control of Coast Guard Sector Baltimore. The cutter’s area of responsibility ranges from the Chesapeake-Delaware Canal south to the Inter-Coastal Waterway in North Carolina. The cutter completes approximately 700-hours of operations annually.

The ceremony is scheduled to take place at the Coast Guard Yard, located at 2401 Hawkins Point Rd., Baltimore, MD, 21226

Media planning to attend must contact Coast Guard Public Affairs Detachment Baltimore at 410-576-2541 no later than 3 p.m. Thursday.

Editor’s note: At the date of publication, all Coast Guard documentation and research indicates Randall will serve as the first female officer-in-charge of the Coast Guard Cutter Chock.