Washington Coast News

A U.S. Coast Guard said it medevaced a woman from a containership off the Washington coast Saturday after she was having difficulty breathing and experiencing temporary unconsciousness.Watchstanders at Coast Guard Sector Puget Sound command center received a call at 11:30 a.m. from the ship’s health insurance provider stating the 65-year-old woman required medical attention.At the time, the 710-foot container ship, Matson Kodiak, was transiting westbound in the Strait of Juan…

The ballistic-missile submarine USS Louisiana and a Navy offshore support vessel collided while conducting routine operations in the Strait of Juan de Fuca off the coast of Washington state on Thursday (August 18, 2016), informs  the United States Navy. The collision occurred at 6:00 p.m. There were no injuries to personnel. Assessments of the damage to both the submarine and the U.S. Navy Offshore Support Vessel are being conducted. The incident is currently under investigation. Both ships returned safely to port under their own power. The U.S. Navy Offshore Support Vessel returned safely to port at Port Angeles, Washington, and the USS Louisiana returned safely to homeport at Naval Base Kitsap Bangor, Washington.

A Coast Guard Station Grays Harbor crew aboard a 29-foot Response Boat-Small II rescued a man who was swept out to sea while wading in the water near the Grays Harbor north jetty at Ocean Shores, Washington, Sunday. The man, in his early twenties, who drifted approximately 300 yards past the tip of the jetty, was rescued from the water by the small boat crew, treated for hypothermia, and taken back to Station Grays Harbor where he was met by local emergency medical services for further medical care. Watch standers at Coast Guard Sector Columbia River received the call from personnel at Grays Harbor County 911 dispatch about the man in the water without a life jacket, who was reported as being swept away  from the jetty and calling for help.

The Coast Guard rescued six people in three separate search-and-rescue cases Saturday along the Washington and Oregon coastline. On Saturday morning, the Coast Guard rescued three people near Coos Bay, Oregon when their boat overturned. On Saturday evening, two kayakers were stranded between Hope Island and Whidbey Island, Washington when their kayaks capsized and required assistance. Additionally, a 58-year-old man was retrieved from the water after falling from D dock at the Port of Ilwaco, Washington. At approximately 5 p.m., Saturday, a watchstander at Coast Guard Sector Puget Sound received a report from 911 dispatch of a male and female kayaker who capsized on the northeast side of Whidbey Island between Whidbey and Hope Islands.

Coast Guard, Seattle Police Department, Seattle Fire Department, King County Sheriff’s Office and Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife personnel rescued a woman after she sustained a leg injury after reportedly being struck by a boat propeller on Lake Washington, Sunday afternoon. Seattle Fire Department personnel aboard a Seattle Police Department boat safely transported the 19-year-old woman to waiting EMS who took her to Harborview Medical Center. "Due to the excellent working relationships the Coast Guard has with our partner agencies in the Seattle area, we executed the rescue using great teamwork and it was without hesitation," said Chief Petty Officer Jeff Wildes from Coast Guard Station Seattle.

Through chilling winds and choppy seas, five-man crews aboard small, gray security boats worked tirelessly for 10 days patrolling the waters around a massive 348-foot petroleum vessel near the coast of Pohang, South Korea. Boat crews from Port Security Unit (PSU) 313 worked night and day to enforce a safety zone around U.S. Naval Ship Vice Adm. K.R. Wheeler and an eight-mile submerged pipeline that extended from the ship to the shores of Dogu Beach. During Combined Joint Logistics Over-the-Shore Exercise (CJLOTS)…

NOAA successfully forecasted the path of a possible Japan Tsunami Dock adrift  off Washington Coast. The dock washed up on the rocky northern coast of Washington state just before Christmas. "We suspect—though we are still waiting for confirmation—that this dock began its oceanic journey in March of 2011 at the Port of Misawa, Japan, following the devastating Tōhoku earthquake and subsequent tsunami. Four docks were ripped away from this port. Although one of the four turned up several weeks later on an island south of Misawa, three of the large floating structures were still missing.

WASHINGTON — Coast Guard Commandant Admiral Bob Papp testified before the U.S. House Appropriations Subcommittee on Homeland Security on the Coast Guard’s Fiscal Year 2013 Budget Request, Tuesday. Papp is scheduled to appear before the Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Subcommittee on Oceans, Atmosphere, Fisheries, and the Coast Guard on Wednesday at 2:30 p.m. and is also scheduled to testify, along with Master Chief Petty Officer of the Coast Guard Michael Leavitt, before the House Transportation and Infrastructure Subcommittee on Coast Guard and Marine Transportation at 10 a.m.

The Coast Guard is participating in joint exercises with U.S. and Canadian naval forces in Washington area waters during the week of Oct. 18-24, 2009. Naval vessels will be seen practicing maritime security in and around the Strait of Juan de Fuca, Wash., and in area coastal waters. Helicopters and other aircraft may be seen overhead as their crews familiarize themselves with the unique geography of the region. The exercise encompasses the training of naval surface assets, command and control and aviation operations as well as several other multilateral events. The exercise is designed to strengthen military-to-military relationships and improve readiness and interoperability between U.S. and Canadian forces. Some aspects of the exercise will be visible to the public.

On January 3, the Tug Pacific Avenger, while towing an oil barge loaded with diesel fuel, experienced a reduction in steering while approximately 20 miles west of Cape Alava, Washington. As per established procedure, Tofino Traffic, Canada, who, as part of the Cooperative Vessel Traffic Service manages vessel traffic of the northern Washington Coast, notified the U.S. Coast Guard of the incident. Sea Coast Towing, the owner of the tug, reported that the Pacific Avenger had experienced a problem with its autopilot and rudder angle indicator – a device that shows the position of the rudder. Although propulsion and manual steering were not affected, Sea Coast Towing arranged for a tug escort by the Barbara Foss and return to port as a precaution.

Security issues to fore at IMO safety meeting Maritime security issues are high on the agenda of IMO's Maritime Safety Committee (MSC), which meets for its 75th session from May 15 to 24 , as Member States prepare for a Diplomatic Conference on Maritime Security scheduled for December 2002, at which any new or amended legislation could be adopted. Other major issues to be tackled include the adoption of proposed amendments to the International Convention for the Safety of Life at Sea (SOLAS), 1974, as amended; ongoing work on the safety of bulk carrier ships and large passenger vessels; implementation of the revised STCW Convention; and the adoption of new and amended ships routeing measures.

Shipping companies and oil-handling facilities should take immediate steps to increase the number of boats available to respond to oil spills in Puget Sound and along Washington's coast, according to Ecology Director Jay Manning. A newly released study commissioned by the Department of Ecology (Ecology) found that there are not enough vessels available to simultaneously deploy oil booms, transport oil-spill equipment and supplies, and provide other spill-response assistance needed during a major oil spill. "With as much shipping and tanker traffic as we have in Washington's waters, a significant oil spill is a very real threat, and we have to be able to stage a rapid and aggressive response effort," said Manning.

WASHINGTON - Coast Guard Director of Port Security, Rear Adm. Craig E. Bone, testified today on chemical facility security before the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee. “Considering the vast economic utility of our ports, waterways and coastal approaches, it is clear that a terrorist incident against a facility in our marine transportation system could have a disastrous impact on public safety, the environment, our nation’s economy, and international trade. Such an incident, if it were to occur in a strategic port, could also threaten our military mobilization capabilities. An incident at one of the 350 chemical…

The Department of Ecology (Ecology) and Crowley Maritime Corp. agreed to continue a contract stationing a company rescue tug at Neah Bay from October 2007 through mid-March 2008. A rescue tug has been stationed at Neah Bay since spring 1999. The tug has stood by or assisted 33 ships that were disabled or had reduced maneuvering or propulsion capability while transiting along the coast and through the Strait of Juan de Fuca. The actions helped ensure the ships didn't drift onto rocks and spill oil. "The Neah Bay area is sacred to the Makah Tribe and Washington's coast is a world-class treasure," said Gov. Chris Gregoire. "Flanked by the Olympic National Park along the coast and the Olympic Coast National Marine Sanctuary where thousands of ships…

According to the PI Reporter, work will continue on a study of whether it is feasible and desirable for the 150 Alaska-bound cruise ships that visit Seattle's waterfront every summer to pump their wastewater ashore rather than dumping it in the ocean. The study is being undertaken by the county's wastewater division and the Port of Seattle in light of the new $60 million cruise terminal being developed by the port at Terminal 91 in Interbay. The new terminal is set to debut in April 2008. A separate project to expand its capacity for handling storm water and sewage at Interbay could be outfitted to transmit the summer cruise waste to Magnolia's West Point Treatment Plant.

The Singapore Maritime and Port Authority (MPA) issued a Marine Circular entitled New Routing Measures other than Traffic Separation Schemes It reports on new routing measures adopted by IMO that will come into effect on December 1, 2002. The measures affect the Tortugas area of the Florida Keys, the Florida Keys generally, Malpelo Island, the Washington coast, and the Strait of Juan de Fuca, the Terra Nova FPSO, and the Shetland Islands.

The USCG-AWO Pacific Region Quality Steering Committee (QSC) has distributed the first near-miss incident report of its quality action team on industry incident reporting. The AWO Pacific Region Summary of Towing Industry Incident Reports: Near-Miss and Lessons Learned Information, is based on six voluntary and anonymous towing vessel incident reports received since the Towing Vessel Incident Report program was initiated by the QSC in June 1998. Two reports involved recreational vessels maneuvering erratically around single barge tows in Puget Sound, resulting in unsafe near-collision conditions. A third incident involved a tow with a lumber barge in San Diego Bay that had to maneuver through a sailboat race.

EPA is proposing an emission control program for new compression-ignition marine engines rated at or above 37 kW. The affected engines are used for propulsion and auxiliary purposes in a wide variety of marine applications. The standards proposed for these engines would require substantial reductions in oxides of nitrogen and particulate matter emissions to correspond with the next round of emission standards for comparable land-based engines. The proposed standards are expected to provide a significant reduction in oxides of nitrogen and particulate matter from emissions from this source. When combined with other mobile source emission control programs, the program will help provide long-term improvements in air quality in many port cities and other coastal areas.

A dramatic video of a horrifically overloaded Haitian migrant sailboat pitching 100 of its passengers into the water as the vessel capsizes en route to the U.S. depicts what the USCG has determined to be its top rescue of the century. For more than 210 years the USCG has been saving lives at sea around the world. The USCG released the video on a compilation tape that shows highlights of the service's top 10 rescues of the century. The rescue of the Haitian migrants thrown overboard is representative of the 255,937 migrants USCG has rescued from overcrowded, unseaworthy craft just since 1980. Many would have undoubtedly have lost their lives during these highly risky crossings had they not been intercepted by the USCG while trying to illegally reach U.S. shores.