USCGA Alumni Association signs contract to begin construction this summer: On May 12, the U.S. Coast Guard Academy Alumni Association (USCGAAA) awarded A/Z Corporation of North Stonington, Connecticut the $18.2 million construction contract for the Maritime Center of Excellence (MCOE) to be built along the waterfront at the U.S. Coast Guard Academy (USCGA) campus in New London, Connecticut. “This is by far the Coast Guard Academy Alumni Association’s largest campaign and is a culmination of recent successes that has seen the Alumni Association give back nearly $50 million to the Coast Guard Academy over the last decade,” said Retired Coast Guard Vice Adm. Manson Brown, Chair of the Alumni Association’s Board of Directors. The funds raised for this facility come primarily from private donors that include CGA alumni, parents of cadets and alumni, and friends of the Academy. Learn more.
Coast Guard conducts maritime security exercise: The Coast Guard conducted a maritime security exercise near Toliva Shoal near Fox Island in Puget Sound, Washington, May 13. The exercise included the use of pyrotechnics and blank ammunition to create a realistic training environment. This exercise is being conducted to ensure the Coast Guard remains responsive, proficient, and prepared to protect the public and greater maritime transportation system from foreign and domestic threats. Learn more.
Coast Guard, partner agencies respond to diesel spill: Members from Coast Guard Sector Delaware Bay coordinated with local partner agencies during a response to a marine diesel fuel spill, from a motor vessel operating in the Maurice River, New Jersey, May 12. Sector members along with representatives from the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection and the Cumberland County Environmental were on scene to monitor response efforts. “Our focus is on minimizing impacts to environmentally sensitive areas and species present in the Delaware Bay and Maurice River,” said Lt. Cmdr. Fredrick Pugh, chief of incident management for Sector Delaware Bay. “We work closely with our federal, state, and local partners to respond to all reports of pollution to protect the environmental and reduce any potential negative impacts.” Learn more.
Suns out, boats out! Coast Guard reminds boaters of new engine cut-off switch law: Mariners, remember the new law requiring recreational boats to use an engine cut-off switch (ECOS) and associated ECOS link (ECOSL). An ECOS is an emergency ignition cut-off device that shuts down the engine if the operator is ejected from the vessel or falls overboard. The law went into effect April 1, 2021, requiring operators of recreational vessels with an installed ECOS to use an ECOS link, which is usually a lanyard clipped onto the operator’s person or lifejacket. This law applies to any boats less than 26 feet in length that generate more than 115 pounds of static thrust (approximately three horsepower) and were built beginning in January 2020. It also requires operators to use the ECOSL while navigating on plane or above displacement speed. Learn more.