Navy Ships Collide

DoD Announces Recovery Act Construction and Repair Projects

from DefenseLINK

The Department of Defense (DoD) announced today details of approximately 3,000 military construction and facility improvement projects funded by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA). The $5.9 billion budget for these construction and repair projects represents the bulk of the approximately $7.4 billion in defense-related funding provided by the ARRA signed by President Barack Obama on Feb. 17, 2009.

DoD Recovery Act funds will be spent at DoD facilities in all 50 states, the District of Columbia, Guam, and Puerto Rico. The primary purpose of these funds is to create jobs and stimulate economic activity across the country. All projects focus on making much-needed improvements to military installations and include hospitals, child development centers, and housing for troops and their families.

The two largest DoD projects to be constructed under the ARRA will be new hospitals at Camp Pendleton, Calif., and Fort Hood, Texas.

Representing less than 1 percent of the entire $787 billion ARRA package, the $7.4 billion investment in defense-related projects will further the legislation’s stated goal of stimulaing the American economy, while improving the quality of life for service members, their families, and DoD civilian workers.

ARRA funds are also being used to support DoD high priority programs such as care for wounded warriors and energy security. Facility improvement projects include many energy conservation measures. $300 million of ARRA funds will be used on military energy research programs so that the DoD can continue to lead the way in the national effort to achieve greater energy independence.

The DoD intends to spend ARRA funds as quickly as possible with full transparency and accountability. To view a complete list of the specific projects announced today, please visit http://www.defenselink.mil/recovery and http://www.recovery.gov . The DoD will continue to use these websites to post future announcements related to ARRA funding.

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Coast Guard takes Positive Next Step with First Senior Executive Leadership Equal Opportunity Seminar

from Coast Guard All Hands

Master Chief Skip Bowen

Last week I attended the first Senior Executive Leadership Equal Opportunity Seminar. The 2 ½ day session was held at Coast Guard Headquarters and attended by 6 Flag Officer/Senior Executive Service members and 5 Command Master Chiefs. The seminar was jointly hosted by the Office of Civil Rights, Coast Guard Human Resources, and the Diversity Office within Human Resources.

The initial idea for the seminar arose last year when Admiral Allen spoke at the Defense Equal Opportunity Management Institute (DEOMI). DEOMI offers an extremely effective senior leader equal opportunity seminar. Admiral Allen felt that having our senior leaders attend such a seminar would provide a tremendous return for the Coast Guard. Over the past several months the curriculum for the Coast Guard course was developed by our own Civil Rights Program with the help of our Diversity Staff and DEOMI subject matter experts.

Admiral Allen’s vision for the seminar was to provide Coast Guard Senior Leadership with a comprehensive update on the current Equal Opportunity program and a full understanding of the important role diversity plays in achieving a workplace where Coast Guard personnel feel valued and respected. When the Commandant spoke to our group he related that for him all these things came down to one simple issue… “Command/Workplace” climate. In other words if our people feel that they are valued, that their supervisors care, and that the co-workers they encounter every day treat them fairly, their will be far less Equal Opportunity issues. His goal is to achieve a high level of competence among all the Coast Guard’s senior leadership regarding these issues. He wants senior leadership to focus on how best to create the high level conditions/direction necessary for fair environments to thrive throughout their commands/realm of responsibility. He felt that one outcome of future seminars could be suggestions that the Coast Guard at large should consider… quick hitters, opportunities for “game changers” to improve diversity and overall Command/Workplace climate.

This first seminar was a prototype, and our group’s goal was to critique the format and re-direct if necessary in preparation for the next seminar.

Popps Ferry Bridge Collapse Video

World War II vet receives Coast Guard Commendation Medal

ALAMEDA, Calif. — The Commander of Coast Guard Pacific Area presented the Coast Guard Commendation Medal to a World War II veteran in a ceremony 17 March 2009 on Coast Guard Island.

Vice Adm. David Pekoske recognized Walter G. Firestone, 88, for his role in fighting an out-of-control fire aboard the munitions ship S.S. El Estero, a Panamanian-registered freighter docked at a New Jersey pier April 24, 1943.

Then-Fireman 3rd Class Firestone and his fellow crewmembers of Coast Guard vessel 39004 were preparing to depart on holiday liberty when word came that the El Estero was on fire. They rushed to the scene and began dousing the fire with water as railroad cars were removed from the pier. After several hours, the order came to scuttle the vessel. The freighter sank into the bay. No one died.

Roughly 5,000 tons of bombs, depth charges and ammunition were stored on El Estero and other nearby ships and railroad cars. It has been argued that, had the explosives ignited, the ensuing chain reaction would have devastated downtown New York and parts of North Jersey, with a death toll in the thousands

Collapse of the Popps Ferry Bridge in Back Bay in Biloxi

The Coast Guard continues to respond to the collapse of the Popps Ferry Bridge in Back Bay in Biloxi, Miss., after the towing vessel Cheryl Stegbauer, pushing eight barges, reportedly allided with the bridge earlier this morning.

A towing vessel pushing eight barges sits outside the channel of Black Bay, after it allided with the Popps Ferry Bridge in Biloxi, Miss., Friday, March 20, 2009, which resulted in 150-foot section of the bridge collapsing into the bay.

BILOXI, Miss. –  The tow was two-barges-wide-by-four-barges-long and was carrying loaded rock. The first two barges were damaged. One barge has sunk and the other is listing due to being covered by a  portion of the collapsed bridge. The tanks on the listing barge have been inspected for leaks and it is not taking on water.

Currently there is a 500-yard safety zone on both sides of the bridge.

While the investigation is still ongoing, initial reports show that the master of the towing vessel was properly licensed.

Coast Guard investigators and pollution investigators are on the scene of the collapse. 

Coast Guard Sector Mobile received a call from the Department of Marine Resources for the state of Mississippi at approximately 7:40 a.m., reporting that the bridge had collapsed onto the barges of the towing vessel.

 Responding are:

• 25-foot smallboat and crew from Station Gulfport, Miss.
• HH65-C rescue helicopter and crew from Air Station New Orleans
• HC-144A Ocean Sentry medium-range surveillance plane from the Aviation Training Center in Mobile, Ala.

 There have been no reports of injuries or pollution.

Coast Guard Report on Illegal, Unregulated and Unreported Fishing

from iCommandant

Read some press coverage on Thursday’s congressional hearing on illegal, unregulated and unreported fishing.

Mar 19, the Deputy Commandant for Operations, RADM Sally Brice-O’Hara, testified on illegal, unregulated and unreported fishing before House of Representatives Committe on Natural Resources, Subcommittee on Insular Affairs, Oceans and Wildlife.

This testimony on IUU touches on many of the points made during the State of the Coast Guard Address earlier this month. It emphasizes the domestic and international economic importance of marine fisheries, it highlights the unique value and reach of our law enforcement authorities and need for robust offshore capabilities, and our ability to improve protection of the global marine ecosystem through international law and partnerships.

Read the testimony here.

Subcommittee on Coast Guard and Maritime Transportation

From the Number One Coast Guard News and Sea Services Site on the Internet

Elijah Cummings Chairman

Subcommittee on Coast Guard and Maritime Transportation  will convene a hearing  on the Overview of Coast Guard Acquisition Policies and Programs in Room 2167  of the Rayburn House Office Building on the 24th of  March 2009 at 10 am.  A live Webcast of this hearingwill be available.

Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure
Summary of the Committee’s Legislative Agenda
for the 111th Congress

Reagan Veto of Civil Rights Restoration Act

From the Number One Coast Guard News and Sea Services Site on the Internet

22 March 1988

Overriding President Reagan’s veto, Congress passes the Civil Rights Restoration Act, which expands the reach of non-discrimination laws within private institutions receiving federal funds.