Ponce News

President Joe Biden is pushing to ease supply shortages and tame rising prices in time for Christmas, but unsnarling U.S. supply lines could take far longer, experts told Reuters.Biden brought together powerbrokers from ports, unions and big business on Wednesday to address shipping, labor and warehousing pain in the U.S. supply chain, and announced new around-the-clock port operations in Los Angeles.As his Republican opposition seizes on possible Christmas shortages to connect Biden's economic policies to inflation…

An ailing crewmember was medevaced from a 400-foot accommodation barge Monday, approximately 140 nautical miles south of Ponce, Puerto Rico, the U.S. Coast Guard said.Watchstanders at Coast Guard Sector San Juan received a call from the DB Superior Performance barge reporting a medical emergency for a 46-year-old crewmember who was experiencing possible cardiac distress and required specialized medical care ashore. At the time of the emergency, the tugboat Crosby Leader was towing…

Hepburn and Sons LLC team has welcomed CAPT Timothy Crone as its newest Director. CAPT Timothy Crone, USN (Ret) will serve as Hepburn’s Director, Advisory Services.CAPT Crone, a graduate of the United States Naval Academy, earned his Bachelor of Science degree in Political Science from the US Naval Academy and completed a Master of Science in Justice, Law and Society from American University. He has also received a Master of Arts in National Security Policy and Strategic Studies from the U.S.

At the Port of Virginia in Norfolk and the Port of Lake Charles in Louisiana, Foss Maritime is loading hundreds of utility trucks onto barges bound for Puerto Rico this week. It’s all part of the on-going effort to restore power to nearly half of the population who are without electricity. Last Friday, Ricardo Rosselló, governor of Puerto Rico, announced that 1.5 million Puerto Ricans are still without power 100 days after Hurricane Maria hit Sept. 20. As part of the on-going power restoration effort, Foss is working with a coalition of 19 U.S. electric companies to deliver between 500 and 600 utility trucks, including bucket trucks, line trucks, pickups, aerial lifts, CAT skid-steer loaders, digger derricks, and pull trailers.

The Hurricane Maria ESF-10 Puerto Rico response team continued Wednesday assessing and removing storm-ravaged vessels from targeted sites throughout the island. Crews conducted boater outreach in Isleta Maria, and surveys in Ponce and Cabo Rojo. Salvage crews also conducted dive assessments in Isleta Maria and crane-barge operations in Puerto Chico. Additionally, the team on Monday removed the last of five vessels targeted for removal in Las Croabas. Saturday, salvage crews used a crane barge to remove a sailboat that was previously  blocking the roadway in north Fajardo.

Shipments of gasoline and diesel into Puerto Rico have resumed after Hurricane Maria, with ports restarting operations, though there were still long fuel lines around the island on Thursday, according to traders and Thomson Reuters tracking data. Residents lined up for diesel for power generators and to fill cars with gasoline, while at least one tanker discharged at the port of San Juan as oil terminals reopened some facilities. The territory still faces logistical hurdles to distribute food, fuel and water. Critics called for more resources and a single authority to oversee relief efforts. Most of the Caribbean island's 3.4 million people still lacked electricity. Gasoline stations have been unable to remain open for more than a few hours at a time, the U.S.

The Navy will commission the Expeditionary Sea Base USS Lewis B. Puller (ESB 3) during a 5 p.m. AST ceremony Thursday, August 17, at Khalifa bin Salman Port in Al Hidd, Bahrain. The future Lewis B. Puller - currently USNS Lewis B. Puller (T-ESB 3 )- is the second ship to bear the name of Lt. Gen. Lewis Burwell "Chesty" Puller, a distinguished combat veteran of World War II and the Korean War. Puller is the only Marine to have been awarded the Navy Cross on five separate occasions and is the most decorated individual in the history of the USMC. The first Lewis B. Puller (FFG 23), an Oliver Hazard Perry-class guided-missile frigate, served from 1982-1998, and was then transferred to the Egyptian Navy and renamed Toushka (F.906). Vice Adm. Kevin M. Donegan, commander, U.S.

The U.S. Navy has a balanced fleet, but it wants to grow bigger and better. Will the budget allow both? Maritime Reporter's March 2017 cover story on the U.S. Navy was all about the numbers. There exists several plans to grow the fleet beyond the current number of 308 ships, the Mitre recommendation of 414 ships, the Center for Strategic and Budgetary Assessment 340-ship proposal, and the Navy’s decision to grow the fleet to 355 ships, and the Trump administration’s 350. With so many numbers being bandied about, there are even more suggestions on how to get there.

U.S., U.K. and France began Exercise Alligator Dagger 17, April 5. The two-week multilateral amphibious exercise is taking place in international waters off the coast of Djibouti and in the vicinity of Djibouti and Arta Beach, April 5 - April 20. Exercise Alligator Dagger 17, led by U.S. Naval Amphibious Forces, Task Force 51/5th Marine Expeditionary Brigade (51/5), is a multilateral amphibious exercise with the Bataan Amphibious Ready Group (ARG) and 24th Marine Expeditionary Unit (MEU) as part of the sustainment training for ARG/MEUs in the U.S. 5th Fleet area of operations. The Alligator Dagger Exercise iterations familiarize ARG/MEUs with the CENTCOM area of responsibility (AOR) and sharpen tactical proficiency.

A U.S. Navy destroyer was targeted on Wednesday in a failed missile attack from territory in Yemen controlled by Iran-aligned Houthi rebels, the second such incident in the past four days, U.S. officials told Reuters. The USS Mason, which was accompanied by the USS Ponce - an amphibious transport dock - fired defensive salvos in response to the missiles, neither of which hit the ship or caused any damage as it operated north of the Bab al-Mandab Strait, the officials said, speaking on condition of anonymity. The renewed attempt to target the U.S. Navy destroyer will add pressure on the U.S.

The United States is seeing growing indications that Iran-allied Houthi rebels, despite denials, were responsible for Sunday's attack on a Navy destroyer off the Yemen coast, U.S. officials told Reuters. The rebels appeared to use small skiffs as spotters to help direct a missile attack on the warship, said U.S. officials, who are not authorized to speak publicly because the investigation is ongoing. The United States is also investigating the possibility that a radar station under Houthi control in Yemen might have also "painted" the USS Mason…

Maritime innovation never stops, and 2015 was certainly no exception, as a number of “world firsts” hit the high seas. In its December 2015 edition Maritime Reporter & Engineering News (http://digitalmagazines.marinelink.com/nwm/MaritimeReporter/201512/) presented its “Great Ships of 2015;” MarineLink.com takes the process one step further, and here confer the “Top Five Ships” of 2015. With a gross tonnage of 168,666, somewhat smaller than the world's largest Oasis class vessels, Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd.

The Navy's 31st Chief of Naval Operations (CNO), Adm. John Richardson, made his first visit to the U.S. 5th Fleet, accompanied by Master Chief Petty Officer of the Navy (MCPON) Mike Stevens at Naval Support Activity (NSA) Bahrain, Oct. 18. More than 700 Sailors and Marines attended an all-hands call with the CNO and MCPON at the NSA Bahrain gym. "Today marks my first month as CNO," Richardson said. Richardson went on to share that he viewed Sailors' service in the Navy as one of accountability, ingenuity and creativity. "I've had the chance to work at a lot of joint commands and talk to a lot of joint commanders," Richardson said. "Every one of those commanders I've talked to are super grateful when they get a U.S. Navy Sailor on their team.

Shipping company TOTE and shipbuilder NASSCO on Saturday launched Perla del Caribe, the second of two Marlin Class ships – the first containerships in the world to be powered by natural gas. The christening and launch ceremony took place at General Dynamics NASSCO’s shipyard in San Diego. The 764-foot-long Perla del Caribe and sister ship, christened Isla Bella, are Jones Act vessels built for the Puerto Rican trade for TOTE Shipholdings and will be operated by TOTE subsidiary Sea Star Line out of Jacksonville, Fla.

Moran Towing Corporation of New Canaan, Connecticut have sold their U.S. flag, ocean deck barge “Norfolk” (ex-Columbia Norfolk, Ponce Trader, UMTB 331, MLC-331) to a private buyers on the U.S. East Coast who specialize in the transport of aggregates. The 331.3’ x 78.0’ x 20.3’ depth, double raked barge was built in 1982 by Marine Power and Equipment of Seattle, Washington for their affiliated companies Marine Leasing Company and Marine Logistics Corporation to operate in the Puget Sound / Alaskan trade. The ABS +A1 classed barge is fitted with 14.5ft.

Officials at the Office of Naval Research (ONR) announced the laser weapon system (LaWS) - a cutting-edge weapon that brings new capabilities to America's Sailors and Marines - was for the first time deployed and operated aboard a naval vessel in the Arabian Gulf. The operational demonstrations, which took place from September to November aboard USS Ponce (AFSB[I] 15), were historic not only because they showed a laser weapon working aboard a deployed U.S. Navy ship, but also because LaWS operated seamlessly with existing ship defense systems.

Puerto Rico announced today that it is looking for a major international port operator to partner with on the development of the Port of the Americas, located in Ponce, on the southern coast of the island. The Port of the Americas site sits on over 300 acres, located just 5 miles from Mercedita Airport, representing a tremendous opportunity for future port capacity expansion and industrial growth. “We are excited to work with a private-sector partner on the Port of the Americas, to help bring jobs and economic opportunity to the southern coast of Puerto Rico,” said Alberto Bacó-Bagué, Secretary of Puerto Rico’s Department of Economic Development and Commerce. “The development of this port is just another step in our larger economic plan focused on long-term strategic growth.

Leaders of the maritime component of PANAMAX 2014 have paused about halfway through the exercise, to assess its benefits so far, informs U.S. Naval Forces Southern Command/U.S. 4th Fleet Public Affairs. Rear Adm. Benjamin Calle of Colombia is the Combined Forces Maritime Component Commander (CFMCC) and U.S. Navy Rear Adm. Jon Matheson, the deputy commander of U.S. Naval Forces Southern Command/U.S. 4th Fleet, is deputy CFMCC for the exercise, which began Aug. 4 and is scheduled to continue through Aug. 15. "This PANAMAX exercise is a huge event," said Calle. Sources say that 38 to 40 ships transit the canal daily between the Pacific and Atlantic oceans, carrying some five percent of world maritime trade.

Today in U.S. 1832 - Frigate Potomac is first U.S. 1864 - R.Adm. 1882 - Authorizing of first steel warships, beginning of the modern Navy. 1915 - First air spotting for shore batteries at Fort Monroe, Va. 1921 - Yangtze River Patrol Force established as command under Asiatic Fleet. 1990 - Navy and Marine Task Force (USS Saipan, USS Ponce, and USS Sumter) begin evacuation of U.S. citizens and foreign nationals from Liberia during civil war. For more information about naval history, visit the Naval History and Heritage Command website at history.navy.mil.

Three boaters whose vessel was taking on water 25 miles northeast of Ponce de Leon Inlet, Fla., Wednesday, arrived safely at Coast Guard Station Ponce De Leon Inlet at 4:39 p.m. Wednesday. Crewmembers assigned to Station Ponce de Leon Inlet came to the aid of the three men, who reported a crack in the hull of their 23-foot vessel, Mo Money, Wednesday morning. The men made a temporary repair, using a life jacket to patch the hole, but the flooding worsened as the vessel was transiting to shore so the Coast Guardsman and the one boater who remained on the Mo Money were transferred to the Coast Guard vessel. A second Coast Guard boatcrew from Station Ponce De Leon Inlet arrived on scene, passed over another de-watering pump, and towed the Mo Money to the Coast Guard Station.

Today in U.S. 1832 - Frigate Potomac is first U.S. 1882 - Authorizing of first steel warships, beginning of the modern Navy. 1915 - First air spotting for shore batteries at Fort Monroe, Va. 1921 - Yangtze River Patrol Force established as command under Asiatic Fleet. 1990 - Navy and Marine Task Force (USS Saipan, USS Ponce, and USS Sumter) begin evacuation of U.S. citizens and foreign nationals from Liberia during civil war. For more information about naval history, visit the Naval History and Heritage Command website at history.navy.mil.

International Mine Countermeasures Exercise (IMCMEX) 13 sees a gathering of 35 ships, 18 Unmanned Underwater Vehicles (UUVs) & over 100 explosive ordinance disposal (EOD) divers. Representatives from 41 nations are assembled in Bahrain to prepare for International Mine Countermeasures Exercise (IMCMEX) 13, May 6-30, 2013, in the Gulf Region. International Mine Countermeasures Exercise (IMCMEX) 13, is the largest exercise of its kind in the region and will exercise a wide spectrum of defensive operations designed to protect international commerce and trade…

Rear Adm. Mark H. Buzby, commander, Military Sealift Command, honored 89 members of USS Ponce's crew, presents new in-command pins. The ceremony held aboard Ponce, underway in the Arabian Sea, highlighting accomplishments associated with bringing Ponce into service and on station. Current and past members of Ponce's combined crew of MSC civil service mariners and U.S. Navy Sailors were recognized with a variety of awards and commendations recognizing their efforts to make the Navy's first Afloat Forward Staging Base (Interim) an operational reality.