Potomac River News

Videos of U.S. military personnel stopping drug-smuggling boats are exhilarating and frightening. They are not Hollywood movies but real-life, dangerous encounters on the high seas. In each of those instances, the use of force applies. The High Power Microwave (HPM) Weapon Systems Division at Naval Surface Warfare Center Dahlgren Division (NSWCDD) makes those encounters safer for everyone involved.“A significant portion of what we do focuses on vessel stopping,” said Kevin Cogley, HPM Weapon Systems Division head.

Crowley Maritime Corp. awarded Thomas B. Crowley Sr. Memorial Scholarships to Great Lakes Maritime Academy (GLMA) cadets Tristan Barnett and Jackson Dagata for their achievements and interest in maritime careers.Named in honor of former Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Thomas B. Crowley Sr., the scholarship benefits promising maritime students. While earning their bachelor’s degrees at GLMA, both Barnett and Dagata also participated in Crowley’s cadet shipping program where…

There are many fine and elegant places to dine in Washington DC, but few offer the comfort and opulence to match the M/V Odyssey III. Her sleek, low profile superstructure designed to pass under the Potomac River bridges contains enough space to provide all the essentials of a grand evening. Cocktails, dinner, dancing and perhaps most importantly, the beauty and romance of watching the city lights from the deck of a boat on the serene river surface.At 240 by 63-feet the Odyssey…

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has announced funding for three clean diesel projects totaling $4.7 million to reduce air pollution from aging diesel engines in the Mid-Atlantic region.The funding will go to the Maryland Environmental Service (MES), the Mid-Atlantic Regional Air Management Association, (MARAMA) and the Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments (WashCOG).“Taking steps to reduce emissions from older diesel engines rates among some of the most cost-effective measures we can take to improve the air we all breathe…

BMT Nigel Gee (BMT), a subsidiary of BMT Group, has announced its latest contract in partnership with sister company BMT Designers & Planners, for four 26.3m catamaran passenger ferries, destined for operation with Potomac Riverboat Company. BMT has worked extensively with Potomac Riverboat Company to develop the concept for the new vessel and continues to support the project with production engineering to the selected builder. BMT Nigel Gee’s experience and proven designs in the fast, low wash ferry sector was a key factor in selection.

The U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) has released draft plans for proposed national marine sanctuaries in Wisconsin and Maryland that would aim to protect nationally significant shipwrecks, including those from the 1800s, World War I and other maritime battlegrounds. The sanctuaries were originally proposed to NOAA in 2014, and if created would be the first since 2000. In Wisconsin, NOAA is proposing to designate a 1,075-square-mile area of Lake Michigan adjacent to Manitowoc…

U.S. Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx today announced $4.85 million in grants to six Marine Highway projects along the waterways of 17 states and the District of Columbia. The goal of the Maritime Administration’s Marine Highway Program is to expand the use of U.S. navigable waterways to relieve landside congestion, reduce air emissions and generate other public benefits by increasing the efficiency of the surface transportation system. “These grants will help us take advantage of the economic and environmental benefits of one of America’s most crucial transportation assets – our coastal and inland waterways,” Foxx said. The grants will help expand existing marine highway operations across New York Harbor…

The Unified Command is scheduled to conduct a dye test Monday in the Potomac River and Roaches Run Waterfowl Sanctuary near Arlington, Virginia, which may discolor portions of the river. As part of the ongoing investigation on the source of the oil sheen in the Roaches Run Waterfowl Sanctuary and the Potomac River, the Coast Guard and Virginia Dept. of Environmental Quality will coordinate with the Arlington County Department of Environmental Services to conduct a dye test in the storm water conveyance system for the Roaches Run watershed. “The purpose of the dye test is to help identify possible source areas for the sheen observed on Roaches Run and in the Potomac River,” said Cmdr. Michael Keane, incident commander. “The dye testing will occur this morning,” added Keane.

An estimated 7,500 to 9,000 gallons of Jet A aviation fuel has spilled within Washington D.C.’s Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport and into the Potomac River, Friday. A Unified Command consisting of the U.S. Coast Guard; Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority personnel, including Airport Operations and Fire and Rescue; D.C. Department of Energy and Environment, Virginia Department of Environmental Quality and D.C. Harbor Patrol has been established and is responding to the spill. Airport operations have not been impacted.

The guide helps to identify countermeasures to avoid human errors and bad decisions. Discover how to manage the human element on all levels – from the engine room, to the bridge, to the shore. From our summary of “The Human Element – A Guide to Human Behavior in the Shipping Industry,” we examine the chapters “Making Sense of Things” and “Risk Taking,” breaking down the most relevant information. Dirk Gregory and Paul Shanahan of the UK Maritime and Coastguard Agency developed the original guide. People are surrounded by vast amounts of information and need to make sense of it all.

With America's population expected to grow by 70 million over the next 30 years, moving the goods that enrich our lives --and the freight that fuels our economy-- will be a key challenge. As our Beyond Traffic draft framework indicates, by 2045, the volume of goods on our roads, rail, air, and water will increase 45 percent or more. Because tomorrow's looming increase will pose a significant burden on our transportation system, we must prepare to handle that freight now by developing and investing in solutions today. The good news is that DOT is working to do just that. Our Nation’s navigable waterways offer us a terrific, underused resource, and the Maritime Administration’s Marine Highway Program works to incorporate that excess capacity into the U.S.

U.S. Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx has designated three new Marine Highway Projects. The Mississippi and Illinois Rivers, previously designated as the M-55 and M-35, connecting Chicago and Minneapolis to New Orleans, will serve as the primary routes for a new container-on-barge service being developed by communities along the rivers. The M-495 Potomac River Commuter Ferry Project will connect work and residential centers located along the Potomac, Occoquan and Anacostia Rivers…

NOAA today announced that Lake Assault Boats of Superior, Wisconsin, will build two small vessels for the Office of Coast Survey's navigation response program, part of a plan to eventually replace all six of the program's small survey boats. The combined cost of both 28-foot vessels is $538,200. "All of the navigation response team survey boats are nearing or have exceeded their designed service life," said Russ Proctor, division chief of Coast Survey's Navigation Services Division.

The Coast Guard will establish a temporary security zone Tuesday in designated waters in the National Capital Region for the State of the Union address. The security zone will be in effect from 4 p.m. Tuesday until 2 a.m. Wednesday, which may limit or prohibit navigation by commercial and recreational waterway users. The security zone will include the Potomac River from the Francis Scott Key Bridge, south to approximately two miles north of the Woodrow Wilson Bridge. The security zone will also include the Georgetown Channel Tidal Basin as well as the Anacostia River from the 11th Street Bridge to its confluence with the Potomac River. Entering or operating in the security zone is prohibited unless authorized by the captain of the port of Baltimore.

Members from various Coast Guard units throughout the United States joined together Sunday in support of the 57th Presidential Inauguration in Washington Monday. Members of the Coast Guard Maritime Safety and Security Team from Coast Guard Regional Dive Locker East, located in Portsmouth, Va., and Coast Guard Regional Dive Locker West, located in San Diego, Calif., patroled areas of the Potomac River for possible security threats. Members of a Vessel Boarding Security Team from Coast Guard Sector Baltimore conducted initial safety inspections aboard the cruise ship Odyssey III.

Coast Guard conducts security patrols along the Potomac River safeguard the 57th Presidential Inauguration, 21, January 2013. The Coast Guard has combined efforts with local, state and federal agencies to provide security in the Washington area in support of the 57th Presidential Inauguration. Agencies are conducting security patrols along the Potomac River, and air assets enforce security zones within the National Capitol Region. "Inter-agency partnership is paramount in a national-security event such as this," said Lt. Cmdr. Randall Brown, Chief of Response at Coast Guard Sector Baltimore.

On August 19, the U.S. Coast Guard officially accepted the installation of the Rescue 21 search-and-rescue system that will provide enhanced life-saving communications capabilities to the entire Chesapeake Bay and the Potomac River, reaching as far as Washington, D.C. Rescue 21 enables the Coast Guard to quickly respond to and assist distressed mariners, saving lives and property. It also provides a wireless communications network that the Coast Guard can use to communicate with federal, state and local law enforcement agencies and other emergency first responders.

1892-After ten years of difficult and costly construction, the St. George Reef Lighthouse, built on a rock lying six miles off the northern coast of California, midway between Capes Mendocino and Bianco, was first lighted. 1944-Landings on Leyte, Philippine Islands. Many Coast Guard units participated in the landings, which marked the the fulfillment of General Douglas MacArthur's promise to the Filipino people that he would return to liberate them from the Japanese. 1950- President Harry S. Truman issued an executive order "activating" the Magnuson Act, which had been passed by Congress earlier that month. This act, authorizing the president to invoke the Espionage Act of 1917, tasked the Coast Guard with the port security mission.

SeaArk Marine, Inc. recently completed a 27-ft Commander RAM fire/rescue boat for the Potomac Heights Volunteer Fire Department in Indian Head, Md. The boat is responsible for fire suppression and emergency rescue missions on the Potomac River and surrounding waters. The SeaArk 27-ft Commander RAM is based on a widely proven hull designed by C. Raymond Hunt & Associates, and is constructed of all-welded marine-grade aluminum. The vessel features a deep-vee variable deadrise hull that produces a smooth…

1853- The ship Cornelius Grinnell grounded in a heavy surf off Squan Beach New Jersey. A surf car was used to rescue all 234 persons on board. 1925- Alaskan Game Law enforced by Coast Guard. 1918-Surfmen from the Humboldt Bay Lifesaving Station rescued the 430-man crew of the Navy cruiser USS Milwaukee after the cruiser ran aground. 1982- Air Florida Flight 90 crashed onto the 14th Street Bridge and then into the Potomac River in Washington, D.C., during a heavy snow storm. Coast Guard units, including the cutters Capstan and Madrona, divers from the Atlantic Strike Team, a helicopter from AIRSTA Elizabeth City, personnel from Curtis Bay, and reservists from Station Washington, assisted in the rescue of the five surviving passengers and the recovery of the aircraft's wreckage.

At its Annual General Meeting in Washington, DC in early April, more than 70 WISTA USA members and guests gathered to discuss issues of concern to the maritime community. Leading authorities from the U.S. Coast Guard, the U.S. Department of Justice, regulatory and trade associations, and the U.S. Congress met with shipping professionals to discuss and debate the current status of environmental and enforcement issues and the impact of the 112th Congress on the industry, and to examine strategies for moving forward.

SeaArk Marine, Inc. recently delivered a 36’ Patrol Boat to the Maryland Department of Natural Resources Police in Stevensville, MD. The 3612-V Dauntless Ram Class vessel is an addition to a similar SeaArk Dauntless patrol boat, and multiple Commander Ram Class patrol boats, previously ordered by the DNR Police through the GSA 1122 program. The vessel, Mattawoman, is tasked with patrolling the Chesapeake Bay, Potomac River and surrounding estuaries within the jurisdiction of the Maryland DNR. The Dauntless Class vessel is based on a hull designed by C.

Newport, Rhode Island – Nv-Charts, a global supplier of charting products for mariners and cruising sailors, has now extended its coverage and produced new chart regions for Chesapeake Bay, just in time for the 2012 cruising and boating season. The coverage is divided into two regions, North and South. The North region includes Delaware Bay and the Chesapeake-Delaware canal, coverage from Cape May, N.J., to the Potomac River; and the Southern region continues down to Norfolk and the surrounding environs.