Coast Guard Helps Navy
Navy Newsstand
Story Number: NNS030808-16
Release Date: 8/9/2003 9:12:00 PM
By Journalist 1st Class Daniel J. Calderón, Commander, Navy Region Hawaii Public Affairs
PEARL HARBOR, Hawaii (NNS) -- The crew of U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Walnut (WLB 205) was busy in the waters in and around Pearl Harbor Aug. 4 and 5, as they performed a Servicing Aids to Navigation (AtoN) evolution over the course of two days.
During the first day's operation, Walnut crew members pulled up buoys all around Honolulu harbor to inspect them. Quartermaster 1st Class (SW) James Gathman of Naval Station Pearl Harbor's Port Operations department said the Coast Guard provides invaluable assistance. "The buoys are one of the primary means of navigations," said Gathman. "They give a ship's captain an immediate visual reference for where the ship is going."
During the inspection, Walnut's 44-person crew hoisted each of the buoys onto the cutter's deck. They cleaned the built up barnacles and other assorted "sea critters" off the portion of the buoy that was below the waterline, and inspected the solar panels. Additionally, the crew of the 225-foot cutter verified the buoy's position, using state-of-the-art technology.
"We have to precisely position each buoy using global positioning satellite (GPS)," said Lt. Rick Wester, Walnut's executive officer. "We try to position it within five meters of its assigned position."
Walnut's crew also made sure the number and night-lights were visible, and inspected the buoy's chain. The section that concerned crew members most is the chafe section. The chafe section is the length of chain that rubs against the ocean floor as the buoy rises and falls with the tides. That section has the most wear and is most in danger of breaking due to the rubbing.
"The ones back here [in the harbor] don't wear as much as the seaward buoys," Wester said. "If a chafe section is really worn down, we cut it and replace it with new chain."
Aug. 5, Walnut's crew pulled buoys out of Pearl Harbor in preparation for upcoming dredging. The first one pulled was six by 20 feet and weighed in at 8,500 pounds. Walnut is equipped with a 60 foot telescoping crane capable of lifting 20 tons. In addition to that buoy, Walnut's crew also lifted several seven foot by 17-foot buoys that weighed 7,800 pounds each out of the West Loch area. Wester feels this mission is important to the Navy, to commercial shipping and for the Coast Guard.
"These buoys mark shallow water, but when we have to tend the buoys, we have to go into that more dangerous area," Wester said. "Ninety-five percent of U.S. trade is done by sea. If the buoy is off station, mariners could veer off course or worse."
Walnut's mission in Pearl Harbor is reminiscent of the one the crew recently accomplished during its deployment to the Arabian Gulf. The cutter left Hawaii Jan. 18 and returned June 28. While in the Gulf, the crew repaired buoys that hadn't been maintained in years. Walnut was one of two coalition ships stationed in Iraq to accomplish that mission and was one of six cutters in the region during Operation Iraqi Freedom.
Since Walnut is also capable of skimming 400 gallons of oil per minute off the ocean's surface, that was another of the cutter's missions. There was a concern that Iraq's former dictator, Saddam Hussein, would try to cause another ecological disaster similar to the one he caused during the previous Gulf War. In addition, Walnut had to take on extra crew to accomplish its wartime mission. Even though the deployment was unexpected, Walnut's crew feels it was worthwhile.
"It was the experience of a lifetime," said Boatswain's Mate 2nd Class Wangdu Hovey. A native of Maui, 22-year-old Hovey is a boarding team member, performs navigation duties on the bridge and is a member of Walnut's dive team. "I'm glad I got the chance to go. In the Gulf, there is the same kind of muddy bottom we have in Pearl Harbor. The current was stronger over there, though."
Walnut's Dive Officer, Lt. j.g. Stephen Walters, said he and his team are called in when the going is a little too dangerous for the cutter to get to the buoy.
"It's all about risk management. We go in when the water is too shallow for the ship to safely pull next to the buoy," Walters said. "Normally, we have two SCUBA divers, one standby and a supervisor."
The dive team goes to the bottom and unhooks the buoy from its mooring so the small boat can tow it back to Walnut. There, Walnut's crew pulls the buoy up and performs the same operations as any other AtoN before returning it to its original spot. During the Aug. 5 evolution, however, Walnut's crew took the buoys back to shore so the harbor can be dredged. Walnut's Commanding Officer, Cmdr. Chris Smith, is proud of the roles his ship and crew carry out.
"We fulfill a variety of roles," Smith said. "In the AtoN area, we help maintain the safety of navigation for mariners both commercial and military. Without that, it wouldn't be safe to bring in big ships. We also act as first responders on oil spills and as a SAR [search and rescue] platform of opportunity and enforce laws and treaties, mainly fisheries laws."
With its current mission complete, Walnut is preparing for a dry-dock period to refresh its systems and prepare for upcoming challenges.
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