Regulated Navigation Areas established along Oregon, Washington coasts

A Coast Guard rule for Regulated Navigation Areas (RNA) along the Oregon and Washington coasts will become effective Thursday.

The rule addresses new lifejacket requirements for vessels crossing a river bar and streamlines the process of closing bars within the RNA when severe environmental conditions exist.

The number of bar closures that occur will not be affected by these regulations. The Coast Guard feels this rule will help mitigate risks associated with the bars and enhance the safety of the persons and vessels operating on and in the vicinity of them.



Above is a video of the capsized 42-foot crab boat Network on the Tillamook, Ore., jetty with three people onboard Friday, Nov. 28, 2008, can be viewed here. This case is an example of the dangers related to bar crossings.

Review the press release for more information.

The Coast Guard encourages the public to view the final rule published in Federal Register Vol. 74, No. 220 at http://www.gpoaccess.gov/fr/index.html.

Spreading holiday cheer to those in need

Hello everyone! Well it was that time of year again, the annual "Shop With A Cop" program in Poulsbo, Wash. This is such a great event for disadvantaged children and teens. To provide them an opportunity to have a little holiday cheer definitely leaves a warm feeling within your heart. Once again I was able to accompany members from the Coast Guard Cutter Midgett and photograph them interacting with the kids. Two crewmembers happily provided personal accounts on the evenings events and wanted to share it with you. Enjoy! - PA3 Molle

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"I'm glad that we were able to have the opportunity to help with the Shop with a Cop program for the third year in a row. It's great that more folks on the Midgett are willing to take the time to help and inspire those in need.

With a government van full of Coast Guard members and a NOAA special agent, we ventured forth on a road-trip to a retail store in Poulsbo, Wash. Fueled by energy drinks and holiday cheer, we took boys and girls of all ages and helped them with their Christmas shopping.

It's an honor to work along with the US Navy, Kitsap County Sheriffs Department and the Washington State Patrol with the same motivation: to help children and spread the Christmas spirit."

- Petty Officer 1st Class Josh Hotai

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"Today, some fellow shipmates and I got to represent the Coast Guard Cutter Midgett and the United States Coast Guard at the 'Shop With A Cop' program, held at a retail store in Poulsbo, Wash. I didn't know what to expect, being my first time going to an event like this.

We arrived in Poulsbo in the early afternoon and lined up with a group of Washington State police forces, including State Patrol, Bainbridge Island Police and the Bremerton Police Units, along with Washington Correctional Officers and a nearby high school had a representing Navy JROTC unit.

We were lined up outside of the store and heard the sounds of police sirens blaring towards us, followed by two coach buses of anxious kids, anywhere from 5 to 17 years of age.

As they piled off the bus, eyes full of excitement and long awaited arrival, they paired us each up with one of the children. I was paired up with one of the Correctional Facility Officers and we got put with a young man by the name of Joey.

Joey was a great kid, nothing but selfless the entire time we were in there, requesting to make sure he picked out gifts for his family members before he even considered buying himself something.

Each child was given a $100 gift certificate to use, so we had a lot of fun with picking out gifts. After the gifts were picked out and purchased, we headed to the back of the store, where the gifts were wrapped up by generous volunteers and associates of the store.

After that, we headed to the employee mess, where we all got to have a bite of food and sit down and enjoy time and company with all the kids we were helping out. We all even got a photo op with Santa, Mrs. Claus, and two elves. The pictures were printed for us, and we all got a copy of them to take home as a memory.

It was sad to see all of them go, but we had a great time! It felt great to be able to help out during this holiday season, with such a big event. To be able to see all of those kids go home with a big smile on their faces made all of us know that we did a good job, and had a great time.

Make sure you take time out of your holiday season this year to help someone in need, because everyone deserves happiness, and it is as easy as bringing a cup of coffee to a homeless person, or tipping a little extra at the restaurant.

Reach out and see what you can do to make a difference in someones life this holiday season!"

- Petty Officer 3rd Class Alex Karjala

Give the gift of safety to the boater in your life

Give the Gift of Safety to the Boater in Your Life
By: Chris Mongillo (Coast Guard Auxiliary Intern)

With the holiday season just around the corner, it’s the perfect time to start thinking about what you want to get for that certain boating enthusiast in your life.

The Coast Guard said this year you might want to opt out of buying your favorite boater that captain’s hat they’ve always wanted. In its place, you should consider giving the gift of safety.

There are a lot of different and helpful gifts that every boater could use. Some of which are even required by state and federal law. You might do some digging to first see if your boater has all of the legally required equipment.

According to Washington State law, the following list is a requirement for any boat to have before it even leaves the dock.

1. All boats, including kayaks and canoes, are required to have at least one U.S. Coast Guard approved life jacket for each person aboard.
2. Boats over 16 feet long need to have one throw able life jacket.
3. Properly functioning navigation lights. Are the bulbs functioning properly?
4. Type B fire extinguishers for the following boats
a. Inboard engines
b. Boat length of 26 feet or longer
c. Closed compartments used to store portable fuel tanks
d. Enclosed living quarters
e. Permanently enclosed fuel tanks
5. A horn of some kind. It can either be built in or handheld.

Once you know the requirements, you can check the boat to see if anything is missing.

If you can’t find some of the required equipment, then you’ve got your Christmas present!
But fear not, if the boater in your life has everything they’re supposed to, there are many other safety devices to make boating safe and enjoyable.

It’s never a bad idea to have flares. There are a couple different types. There are aerial flares shot from a 12 gauge launcher and hand held smoke signals.

Boaters should also have a good first aid kit on board. There are many first aid kits out there and each is designed for something different. Make sure you buy a kit that matches the type of boating you do.

If you plan to cross the pacific, you’ll need more than one box of band aids. Other things you should consider, but are not required, is a CB Radio, a GPS or an emergency position-indicating radio beacon.

And what mariner can leave the dock without a trusty compass? When all else fails a good compass won’t.

Stocking stuffer ideas might include new line, or for a really big stocking; a set of fenders.

One free gift idea comes from the Coast Guard. It’s a Paddle Smart sticker that you adhere to your unregistered boat. These boats include kayaks, canoes, rowboats and skiffs. This waterproof sticker could help get your lost boat returned to you or even lead to your rescue.

To get the Paddle Smart identification sticker, please visit the following link.
http://www.uscgboating.org/

Coast Guard’s top nautical gifts ideas are:

• A Marine GPS navigation system
• A 406 Mhz EPIRB (make sure you register it after purchase, or rescuers may be delayed in reaching you!  In remote Alaska areas, this may become your ONLY way to call for help.)
• A Coast Guard-approved life jacket (because they float, you don’t…)
• A handheld VHF marine radio
• A Boating Safety Course (boater education saves lives — it’s a fact)
• Vessel Safety Check (VSC) from the Coast Guard Auxiliary (it’s free!)
• A Coast Guard approved fire extinguisher
• A first aid kit in a watertight container
• A seamanship book
• Nautical charts for the areas your favorite mariner frequents
• A signaling kit (mirror, whistle and day/ night flares)
• Clothing that is warm and water resistant and appropriate for Alaska and its extreme environments
• Life raft with a survival kit

Happy holidays!

USCG Innovation Expo: What is your innovation - Web Based Armed Forces Classification Testing

Mary Norwood, FORCECOM 541 discusses Web Based Armed Forces Classification Testing which replaces a paper based process used by Educational Service Officers (ESO) with a online test.



These videos are uploaded in high definition - HD versions can be viewed by using the HD button on the YouTube player.

USCG Innovation Expo: What is your innovation - Incident Command Post in a Box

ITC James Ussery of ESU New Orleans discusses the Incident Command Post (ICP) in a Box.

USCG Innovation Expo: What is your innovation - Force Tracker

Ben Ferguson of ESU New Orleans discusses Force Tracker.

Honorary Master Chief

I wanted to take a moment to share an event from last night here at the 2009 Coast Guard Innovation Expo. Our old boss, Vice Admiral Currier was recognized by the Master Chiefs, Senior Chiefs and Chiefs of the Coast Guard. During the festivities he was named an Honorary Coast Guard Master Chief by the Master Chief of the Coast Guard Charles Bowen, Master Chief Kevin Isherwood and Master Chief John Dunn.

The title of Honorary Chief is bestowed on individuals by the Master Chief of the Coast Guard as a way to recognize people who have demonstrated a significant commitment to Coast Guard Chiefs, the Chief's Mess and the enlisted corps.



Congratulations Vice Admiral Currier and welcome to the Chief's Mess.

USCG Innovation Expo: What is your innovation - Paddle Smart

LT. Patrick Montgomery, FORCECOM, shares the Paddle Smart Initiative. Simple in concept, this innovation has the potential to significantly reduce Search and Rescue cases by helping owners of human powered watercraft label their vessels with contact information. When this contact information is on a wayward vessel we can quickly determine if the vessel has simply been lost or if the operator is potentially in distress.



I'm looking forward to these materials arriving at Sector Portland - we will get them into the field and start getting our area's human powered vessels labeled.

Walkthrough of the 2009 Coast Guard Innovation Expo

Day two at the Coast Guard Innovation Expo in Virginia Beach and the creative juices are flowing. We've met old friends and made lots of new ones. The highlight today was a breakfast with the Coast Guard's enlisted innovators. The exceptional petty officers met and had breakfast with the Coast Guard's senior enlisted and officer leadership.

Today we took an opportunity to try and give you a feel for what it's like to be on the expo floor. Here is a video of a walkthrough of the expo. This is the only way to view the entire 2009 Coast Guard Innovation Expo floor in under ten minutes, trust me we tried. There are so many great ideas and cool things to see you just have to stop, look and talk to your fellow Guardian's to see if there is a way you can use this or that idea at your unit.

USCG Innovation Expo: What is your innovation - USCGC Healy

As part of our Innovation Expo coverage we are interviewing Guardian Innovators about their innovations. Ensign Lisa Myatt briefs us on the USCGC Healy's waste management and recycling program which won the 2009 CDR Joel Magnussen Innovation Award for Management. Congratulations to the crew of USCGC Healy! Leading the way in the Arctic and leading the way in protecting the marine environment.

Innovation Expo Day One: USCG Podcamp

Day two of the Innovation Expo found us splitting our time between the booth and the first ever Coast Guard Podcamp. 

The air throughout the convention center is electric with ideas being shared and new ideas being hatched. The one thing is clear Guardians are problem solvers. We'll have more of those innovations later.

The big focus today was the first ever Coast Guard Podcamp. We discussed the tools and how-to's that have helped make social media in the Coast Guard successful. We had a visit from Blogger Bob of the TSA Blog who shared his rules for success (humor helps) and Peter Mello from Messing About in Ships talked to us about podcasting.

Thanks to all of the participants and organizers for making the Podcamp a success

Keep with us throughout the week for more from Virginia Beach.