The Puget Sound will be one of the first recipients of the Rescue 21 system, a modernization of the National Distress and Response System. Seattle and Port Angeles will be two of the primary areas, nation-wide, to receive the new system, which is scheduled to be the nation’s primary maritime “911” system for waterways within the continental U.S., Alaska, Hawaii, Guam and Puerto Rico, by September 2006. “This new system will enhance maritime safety by helping to minimize the time that search-and-rescue teams spend looking for people in distress,” said U.S. Secretary of Transportation Norman Y. Mineta. Rescue 21 will also assist the Coast Guard in enforcing laws, preventing terrorism and security threats, and reducing the damage threatening the marine environment.