ALAMEDA, Calif. - A Coast Guard rescue crew responded to a report of a sinking fishing vessel near Salt Point in Jenner, Calif., at approximately 6:10 a.m. Monday.

Watchstanders at the Coast Guard Sector San Francisco Command Center received a call that the 34-foot commercial fishing vessel Robert Croll had struck a rock and was taking on water with three people aboard. The crew entered the vessel's life raft after it was determined the dewatering equipment onboard was not keeping up with the flooding.

A Coast Guard Station Bodega Bay 47-foot Motor Lifeboat rescue crew was launched and arrived on scene at approximately 7 a.m. The Sonoma County lifeguards also responded shore side.

The Station Bodega Bay boat crew safely transferred all passengers back to Station Bodega Bay with no injuries reported.

Drug and alcohol testing has been conducted.

There was no pollution reported.

ALAMEDA, Calif. — The U.S. Coast Guard coordinated the rescue of three sailors aboard a sinking sailboat approximately 50 miles south of Balboa, Panama, at approximately 5:23 p.m., Sunday.

Watchstanders from the 11th Coast Guard District rescue coordination center in Alameda, Calif., were notified at approximately 4:15 a.m. Sunday of a distress signal from a U.S.-registered 406 MHz emergency position indicating radio beacon (EPIRB) that was traced to the 42-foot Even Star.

Search planners contacted the family of the owner who said the vessel had three U.S. citizens aboard and were on a voyage from California to Panama.

The Coast Guard used the Automated Mutual-Assistance Vessel Rescue (AMVER) system and issued a safety alert requesting vessels in the area to assist. The 600-foot motor vessel Glenda Meryl, an AMVER system vessel, was approximately 30 miles away and responded. The Liberian-registered tanker arrived on scene at 5:23 p.m. and safely rescued the three sailors.

The sailboat had reportedly been taking on water since Saturday, which had become unmanageable even with onboard pumps. The three sailors arrived in Balboa, Panama, on the Glenda Meryl this morning. There were no injuries reported.

A ham radio operator with the Panama Air force also assisted with communications and coordination of the rescue.

"The EPIRB was the key to saving these lives," said Capt. Michael Eagle, Chief of the 11th Coast Guard District Response. "We appreciate the quick response from fellow mariners and Ham radio stations in this case, but without that initial signal from the EPIRB we may never have known about this distress. We urge all boaters to get an EPIRB, and register it with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration."

If you purchase a new or used U.S. coded 406 MHz beacon you MUST register it with NOAA as required by law. Click here for more information: http://www.sarsat.noaa.gov/beacon.html

The tanker that performed the rescue was a member of AMVER. Sponsored by the U. S. Coast Guard, AMVER is a unique, computer-based, and voluntary global ship reporting system used worldwide by search and rescue authorities to arrange for assistance to persons in distress at sea.

With AMVER, rescue coordinators can identify participating ships in the area of distress and divert the best-suited ship or ships to respond. http://www.amver.com to learn more about this unique worldwide search and rescue system.

The Golden Gate Bridge enveloped in dense fog. (Coast Guard photo)

An aviation survival technician practices hoisting manuevers beneath a Coast Guard helicopter. (Coast Guard photo)

The crew of CG-6515. Photo courtesy of Coast Guard Air Station San Francisco (Coast Guard photo)

Story by Lt. Jesse Keyser, Coast Guard Air Station San Francisco 

The night of July 30, 2013, was a night like any in the San Francisco Bay Area – foggy, with a high probability of low cloud ceilings.  Those who know the area are well aware of the micro-climates and chilly fog layers that can overtake the Bay in a matter of minutes.  Images of the city skyline and the twin stantions of the Golden Gate Bridge peering out through snow-like clouds are a common sight.

Coast Guard Air Station San Francisco, based at San Francisco International Airport, is home to four Coast Guard MH-65D Short Range Recovery Helicopters.  Lt. Cmdr. James Kenshalo was the duty aircraft commander that evening, along with co-pilot Lt. Beau Belanger.  Both were well aware of the unpredictable weather conditions, and had practiced the “low visibility route” many times; a precision passage which forces the pilot to fly beneath both the Bay and the Golden Gate Bridges in order to safely reach offshore airspace.

So the night was just like any other.  And then suddenly it wasn’t.  The quiet was interrupted by the SAR alarm.

Both pilots and the assigned air crew — Aviation Machinery Technician Petty Officer 3rd Class Travis Swain, and Aviation Survival Technician Petty Officer 3rd Class Corey Fix — were geared up and ready to perform.  The crew of CG-6515 was directed to launch and rescue six hikers requiring immediate evacuation from a secluded cove in the vicinity of Point Reyes, Calif., notably one of the foggiest places in the country.  As the rescue crew lifted off, they quickly encountered a dense fog offering less than 200 feet of space between the waterline and the cloud layer, and a mere one-half nautical mile of visibility.

“It was intense,” said Kenshalo.  “You get a feel for fog here in San Francisco.  This fog was pushing us down.”

The barrier of mountains ahead blocked the most direct route to the search area.  Exercising “superior crew resource management,” the decision was made to utilize the low-visibility route offshore and follow the coastline to the hikers’ location.  But precipitous cliffs, poor visibility and low cloud ceilings made the search conditions extremely hazardous.  As they navigated past steep-walled bluffs along the coastline, the crew used night vision goggles and the aircraft’s radar, at last locating the stranded hikers in a narrow cove surrounded by towering rock fingers.

The easy part was over.  With only a few feet of clearance between the rotor blades and the jagged face of the cliffs, Kenshalo and Belanger struggled agianst buffeting winds to maintain position over the survivors.

“I couldn’t go up because of the fog, I couldn’t go sideways because of the cliffs, I couldn’t go down because of the water,” said Kenshalo.  “So I hovered, trying to stay close to the beach without hitting the cliffs.”

As the helicopter hovered over the small beach, flight mechanic AMT3 Swain lowered rescue swimmer AST3 Fix down to the cove in order to triage and assess the frightened hikers and prepare them for hoisting.  The deafening roar of the engines echoed off the bluffs, rendering traditional radio communications all but useless.

“We were all on the same page, but couldn’t hear each other,” said Fix.  “The radio was pretty much out, so I switched to hand signals.  That worked out well.”  Using nighttime hand signals and solid crew coordination, the pair worked to hoist four of the survivors aboard. But by now, the helicopter was running dangerously low on fuel and had to turn back.  Swain then lowered emergency provisions to Fix, who would remain behind with the two hikers.

Managing their dwindling fuel reserves, Kenshalo and Belanger reversed their perilous course to the station, delivering the first four stranded hikers to emergency medical technicians waiting at the air station.  They landed with less than 20 minutes of fuel remaining in their tank.

The rapidly deteriorating weather made the second low-visibilty route back to the incident even more challenging.  Not only were the pilot and co-pilot unable to see suspension cables, towers, or the auto decks of bridges but the added moisture in the air caused the helicopter’s landing lights to create visual illusions, disorienting the crew.  Forced to shut off the lights, they  made the transit blind, using only the radar to guide them.

“And now it’s really dark,” Belanger reiterated.  “There was so much humidity in the air that our normal search lights weren’t working.  I couldn’t even see the cliffs.”

Instead they used flares to reflect light off the cliffs and illuminate the cove.  Once again operating the helicopter at the edge of its performance envelope, the crew completed another hoist, raising the first of the two remaining stranded hikers to safety.  As each flare was extinguished, the pilot was forced to initiate a demanding “no-reference orbit” in the fog surrrounding the confined inlet until another flare could be lit.

“We had some flares [aboard] that would light up for about 18 minutes, so we dropped one in the ocean and it lit up the cliffs just fine,” said Belanger.  Using the light, the crew repositioned themselves for the final hoists.

Suddenly the wind shifted, significantly increasing the amount of engine power required to maintain a hover and causing the aircraft to unexpectedly settle towards the water.  The crew was forced to momentarily abort the hoist as Fix, now dangling beneath the helicopter, used his own body to shield the remaining hiker from banging against the rocks.

“I braced for impact,”  chuckled  Fix as he later related the incident.  “Maybe it was the adrenaline, but I’m still not sure how that one didn’t hurt!” 

Knowing that if the helicopter experienced a second similar power loss, it would likely cost them their lives, Kenshalo manuevered the helicopter  “nose-to” the cliff without the usual emergency “fly-out” route in order to optimize the buffeting wind ricocheting off the rock face around the helicopter.  This unconventional and risky maneuver provided just enough power to complete the final hoist.

The moment Fix and the remaining hiker were safe in the cabin, Kenshalo completed a hovering pedal turn and put the aircraft on a safe heading before completing an instrument-only climb  through the dense fog.  At 2,000 feet, the helicopter finally broke free of the clouds with the last of the rescued hikers.

Emotionally and physically exhausted after three hours of the most challenging flying conditions in nighttime fog, including four demanding hoists and six low-level passes beneath two bridges, the crew landed – again, with only minutes of fuel remaining.

For pilots of all professions, every geographic location comes with its own unique set of challenges.  “I’ve been on a couple of really tough cases, but this one was the hardest to pull off,” said Kenshalo.

“At the end of the night, you come back and slump down in a chair, and the wind knocks right out of you.”

ALAMEDA, Calif. – The U.S. Coast Guard has released today the Major Incident Investigation (MII) Report into the incident aboard the Coast Guard Cutter Waesche, which resulted in the death of Petty Officer 3^rd Class Travis Obendorf.

Obendorf was a crewmember aboard the Alameda-based Coast Guard Cutter Waesche.  He died in a Seattle hospital Dec. 18, 2013, as a result of injuries he sustained during search and rescue operations near Amak Island, Alaska, Nov. 11, 2013.

The report identifies causal and contributing factors, including equipment failure, placement of small boat personnel and prevailing weather conditions.

The investigation found that a capture system designed to automatically secure the small boat into the stern during recovery operations did not function as designed most of the time.  To overcome this deficiency, a crew member, Petty Officer Obendorf in this case, was posted in front of the small boat center console to manually assist the mechanism during recovery operations.  During this evolution, a wave struck the stern of the small boat as it was recovering, pinning Petty Officer Obendorf between the capture mechanism and the small boat console.

"Petty Officer Obendorf and his family are and will continue to be in our thoughts and prayers,” said Vice Adm. Paul K. Zukunft, Pacific Area Commander. “From this tragedy, we are reminded of the harsh operating environment in which the Coast Guard serves our nation and mariners in distress, and we have re-doubled our efforts in remaining eternally vigilant."

The MII Report is publically available online in the Coast Guard’s FOIA reading room.   http://www.uscg.mil/foia/FOIA_Library.asp. 

ALAMEDA, Calif. -- Coast Guard, Air Force and Navy personnel are responding to the report of a sick infant aboard a 36-foot sailboat approximately 900 miles southwest of Cabo San Lucas, Mexico.

At approximately 7 a.m. Thursday, Coast Guard personnel in Alameda, Calif., were notified via a satellite phone from the vessel operator that a one year-old child aboard the sailing vessel, Rebel Heart, was ill and required assistance. A Coast Guard flight surgeon recommended the child be seen by medical personnel within 2 days.

The Coast Guard requested assistance from the California Air National Guard's 129th Rescue Wing, stationed at Moffett Federal Airfield, Calif. and the U.S. Navy.

The California Air National Guard launched an Air Force MC-130P Combat Shadow aircraft with four pararescuemen embarked. At approximately 8 p.m. they arrived on scene and rendered assistance.  They provided medical aid and reported the child to be in stable condition.  Additionally, U.S. 3rd Fleet directed Oliver Hazard Perry-class frigate USS Vandegrift (FFG 48) to assist in the rescue of the family aboard the sailing vessel. 

Vandegrift is expected to reach the sailing vessel late Saturday evening. 

For Air National Guard questions, please contact 2nd Lt. Roderick B. Bersamina, 129th RQW public affairs officer, at 650-404-7995.

SAN FRANCISCO -- At approximately 12:40 p.m. Saturday, the Coast Guard was notified of a pleasure craft that had caught fire a half a mile off Tiburon, Calif.

The vessel had three children and five adults on board and all were wearing their lifejackets.

The Coast Guard dispatched a 45-foot Response Boat Medium from Station San Francisco, an MH-65 Dolphin Helicopter from Air Station San Francisco, and notified other vessels in the area that assistance was needed. With the billowing smoke and unbearably hot conditions onboard, the Coast Guard instructed the personnel to enter the water and link arms to stay together. A pleasure craft in the area was able to retrieve all eight people from the water.

Tiburon Fire Department’s boat responded and put out the fire. The rescued people were taken to Loch Lomond Marina in San Rafael, Calif. No injuries were reported.

This response highlights the importance of having proper safety equipment on board vessels, especially lifejackets. With the summer season just around the corner, the Coast Guard would like to remind boaters that the Coast Guard Auxiliary offers no-fault vessel safety checks which help verify the presence and condition of certain equipment required by state and federal regulations. More information here: http://cgaux.org/vsc/

ALAMEDA, Calif. -- A family with a sick infant safely boarded a Navy frigate Sunday morning as part of a rescue by Coast Guard, Air National Guard and Navy personnel approximately 900 miles southwest of Cabo San Lucas, Mexico.

ALAMEDA, Calif. -- A family with a sick infant rescued from a disabled sailboat approximately 1,500 miles southwest of San Diego remains stable aboard a Navy frigate and is slated to arrive in San Diego Wednesday. 

The rescue follows a call from the sailing vessel Rebel Heart operator Thursday to the Coast Guard requesting assistance for a one-year-old child. A Coast Guard flight surgeon recommended the child be seen by medical personnel within two days.

The Coast Guard requested assistance from the California Air National Guard's 129th Rescue Wing, stationed at Moffet Field, Calif. and the Navy. The 129th Rescue Wing launched an Air Force MC-130P Combat Shadow aircraft and four pararescuemen. At approximately 8 p.m. they arrived on scene with Rebel Heart and provided medical aid and care for the family.

At approximately 8 a.m. Sunday, sailors from the USS Vandegrift (FFG 48) brought the family and National Guard pararescuemen aboard using one of the ship's small boats.  Navy medical personnel and National Guardsmen will continue to care for the family and monitor the condition of the child until she is transferred to medical treatment ashore.  

###

NOTE TO EDITORS:  

We have received a number of queries regarding whether search and rescue survivors are charged for rescue services.  The following statement is provided: 

"The Coast Guard does not charge for search and rescue operations," said Lt. Anna Dixon of the 11th Coast Guard District.  "We don't want people in trouble at sea to hesitate to call for help for fear they'll be charged for assistance.  Mariners assisting one another at sea is a both a time honored tradition and a requirement of the Safety of Life at Sea Convention of the International Maritime Organization." 

The Coast Guard is the Search and Rescue Mission Coordinator (SMC) for the Rebel Heart rescue operation, but no Coast Guard vessels or aircraft have been deployed.  A Navy vessel and California Air National Guard aircraft are involved but those agencies have not indicated plans to seek reimbursement for this rescue operation.   

Contacts:   

Navy:  Lt. Lenaya Rotklein, 619-767-4387 

http://www.navy.mil

California Air National Guard:  2nd Lt. Roderick Bersamina, 650-404-7995 

http://www.129rqw.ang.af.mil/news/index.asp

Release by U.S. Third Fleet and Naval Surface Force, U.S. Pacific Fleet
 Public
 Affairs

SAN DIEGO - The Oliver Hazard Perry-class guided missile frigate USS
Vandegrift (FFG 48) is scheduled to arrive Naval Base San Diego April 9
following the rescue of a family with a sick infant on a disabled sailboat
approximately 1,300 miles south of San Diego. The ship will make a previously scheduled stop at Naval Air Station North
Island to load ordnance.  The family has requested to disembark at that time
to proceed to their family physician.



NOTE: The family does not wish to speak with media at this time.


Vandegrift will proceed to Naval Base San Diego once the ship has completed
loading ordnance.  The ship's commanding officer, executive officer and
other Sailors involved with the rescue will be available for interviews.
Media interested in covering the return of USS Vandegrift (FFG 48) should
contact Naval Surface Forces Public Affairs Office by 4 p.m., April 8 at
619-437-2034 or 619-723-5185 and plan to meet at the Naval Base San Diego
Pass/ID office at 3 p.m. on April 9 to gain access to the base.



For more information on USS Vandegrift, please visit
 http://www.public.navy.mil/surfor/ffg48/

For more information, please contact Navy Lt. Lenaya Rotklein, deputy public affairs officer, at 619-767-4387.

ALAMEDA, Calif. - The Coast Guard and the San Francisco Fire Department are searching for a 14-year-old boy who went missing on Ocean Beach near Lincoln Way and Great Highway at approximately 4 p.m. Wednesday.

A father, son and a cousin were on the beach when the boy was suddenly swept out by waves. The father rushed into the surf after his son to save him. A nearby surfer was able to assist the father and cousin back to shore.

The Coast Guard received a call from San Francisco Fire Department dispatch and immediately deployed a rescue boat crew from Coast Guard Station Golden Gate, and a rescue helicopter crew from Air Station San Francisco. San Francisco Fire Department personnel pulled the father from the water, gave him medical attention and transported him to University of California San Francisco Medical Center for further medical care.

The son remains missing and Coast Guard Station Golden Gate, Coast Guard Air Station San Francisco and San Francisco Fire Department assets are continuing the search efforts.

Search Patterns for missing 14 year old off Ocean Beach in San Francisco

ALAMEDA, Calif. - The Coast Guard suspended its active search at 1:30 p.m., Thursday for a 14-year-old boy who went missing off of Ocean Beach in San Francisco near Lincoln Way and Great Highway at approximately 4 p.m. Wednesday.

A father, son and a cousin were on the beach when the son was swept out by waves. The father rushed into the surf to attempt to help his son but was unable to do so. A nearby surfer was able to assist the father and cousin back to shore.

The Coast Guard received a call from San Francisco Fire Department dispatch and immediately deployed a 47-foot Motor Lifeboat and 29-foot response boat small rescue crew from Coast Guard Station Golden Gate, and a rescue helicopter crew from Air Station San Francisco.

Coast Guard Cutter Sockeye arrived on scene late Wednesday and searched throughout the night. 

The 418-foot Alameda-based Coast Guard Cutter Stratton steams through the water off the coast of San Diego, April 3, 2014. The cutter is named after Capt. Dorothy Stratton, the first woman accepted into the Coast Guard Women’s Reserve known as the SPAR, an acronym derived from the Coast Guard's motto of Semper Paratus and its translation Always Ready. U.S. Coast Guard photo by Petty Officer 3rd Class Connie Terrell.

ALAMEDA, Calif. – The U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Stratton is scheduled to return to its homeport at Coast Guard Island in Alameda, Calif., Sunday at 10:30 a.m., after a 97 day deployment to the Eastern Pacific Ocean.  

Since departing Jan. 6th, Stratton completed a 22,000-mile patrol in support of joint counter-drug operations off the coast of California and in the Eastern Pacific Ocean. During this operational patrol, Stratton’s law enforcement crews seized 500 kilograms and disrupted 1,650 kilograms of cocaine valued in excess of $70 Million.

As a multi-mission platform, Stratton demonstrated their dedication to marine life when a crew aboard their small boat noticed a sea turtle entangled in fishing line about 500 miles off the coast of Panama March 19, 2014. After brining the turtle aboard the small boat, the crewmembers freed it from the line and sent it back to sea.

Crew members of the Coast Guard Cutter Stratton rescued a sea turtle that was trapped in fishing line 500 miles off the coast of Panama, March 19, 2014. Stratton returns from a 97-day deployment to the Eastern Pacific Ocean April 13, 2014. U.S. Coast Guard photo.

During a port call in Panama City, Panama, Stratton crew members participated in a community relations project by painting and restoring a local orphanage, completing more than two months of work in a working day of eight hours.

Members of the Coast Guard Cutter Stratton paint a wall of an orphanage during a port call in Panama City, Panama. In all, the Coasties spent eight hours painting and restoring the orphanage. Stratton returns from a 97-day deployment to the Eastern Pacific Ocean April 13, 2014. U.S. Coast Guard photo.

Stratton is the Coast Guard’s newest National Security Cutter and is capable of patrolling from South America to the Bering Sea. Their unmatched combination of range, speed, and ability to operate in extreme weather and with a crew of 145 members are a critical component of the Coast Guard. Stratton provides the mission flexibility necessary to conduct counter-narcotics, homeland security, and alien migrant interdiction operations, domestic fisheries protection, search and rescue, and other Coast Guard missions at great distances from shore keeping threats far from the U.S. mainland.

Media interested in attending the arrival of the Stratton should contact Coast Guard Pacific Area Public Affairs Office, Chief Warrant Officer Allyson Conroy, at 510-437-5682 or Allyson.e.conroy@uscg.mil. To allowed on base media whould be prepared to provide photo I.D., and proof of insurance in order to gain access to the base.  Pier-side interviews with the commanding officer and crew will be available. 

Click on images for high-res versions

Click here for video of CGC Stratton homecoming

Members of the Coast Guard Cutter Stratton, who returned to their homeport of Alameda April 13, 2014, after a 97-day deployment to the Eastern Pacific Ocean, work together to move a electrical shore tie into place. Since departing Jan. 6, Stratton completed a 22,000-mile patrol in support of joint counter-drug operations off the coast of California and in the Eastern Pacific Ocean. (Coast Guard photo by Petty Officer 1st Class Thomas McKenzie)

Members of the Coast Guard Cutter Stratton, who returned to their homeport in Alameda April 13, 2014, after a 97-day deployment to the Eastern Pacific Ocean, work together to move a electrical shore tie into place. Since departing Jan. 6, Stratton completed a 22,000-mile patrol in support of joint counter-drug operations off the coast of California and in the Eastern Pacific Ocean. (Coast Guard photo by Petty Officer 1st Class Thomas McKenzie)

Friends and family wait to greet their loved ones aboard the Coast Guard Stratton as it returns to homeport in Alameda, April 13, 2014. Since departing Jan. 6, Stratton completed a 22,000-mile patrol in support of joint counter-drug operations off the coast of California and in the Eastern Pacific Ocean. (Coast Guard photo by Petty Officer 1st Class Thomas McKenzie)

ALAMEDA, Calif. — The Coast Guard launched a search for possible missing persons after a capsized vessel was found near Pigeon Cove in Pescadero, Calif., Monday.

Local Coast Guard Auxiliary, San Mateo County Fire and State Parks personnel notified Coast Guard Sector San Francisco watchstanders at approximately 11 a.m., reporting a 18-to-20 foot vessel was capsized.

A Coast Guard Air Station San Francisco MH-65 Dolphin helicopter crew, a Station Golden Gate 47-foot Motor Life Boat crew and the Coast Guard Cutter Sockeye were launched to search the area. The capsized vessel was located and after a thorough search did not find anyone in distress. Coast Guard, and other responding federal and regional law enforcement agencies determined the vessel had characteristics similar to that of a panga. 

Over the past few years, officials have seen a trend of smugglers from Mexico traveling farther north along the California coast taking longer routes and greater risks to evade patrols.

"Fast 25- to 50-foot open-hull boats powered by two or more outboard motors, commonly referred to as 'pangas,' are used by smugglers to transport illegal drugs and people into the United States," said Capt. Greg Stump, Coast Guard Sector San Francisco commander.

"Some folks may ask, 'What's the big deal?' The big deal is that this smuggling activity helps fund violent international criminal organizations, threatens the safety of law-abiding citizens at sea and ashore, and contributes to the supply of illegal drugs on our streets. We're asking the public to help us stop smuggling by reporting any suspicious activity," said Stump.

The money earned from smuggling, and the illegal activities related to it, have been cited as a destabilizing influence in Mexico and causes tremendous harm to communities on both sides of the border. Illegal drug and human trafficking places federal, state, and local law enforcement officers as well as private citizens in danger.

The public is urged to report suspicious maritime activity by calling 911, or call the Department of Homeland Security Tip Line at 415-426-8815. All calls to the Tip Line are confidential and callers may remain anonymous if they choose.

The Coast Guard's anti-smuggling poster may be viewed at:

http://www.dvidshub.net/image/1051563/coast-guard-anti-smuggling-poster

Vice Adm. Paul F. Zukunft	Rear Adm. Charles W. Ray

ALAMEDA, Calif. – Rear Adm. Charles W. Ray will relieve Vice Adm. Paul F. Zukunft as Commander, Coast Guard Pacific Area and Coast Guard Defense Forces West, in a change-of-command ceremony scheduled for Tuesday, at 11 a.m., at Coast Guard Island in Alameda.

Zukunft has served as the Pacific Area Commander since April 2012, and is leaving to assume the duties as the Coast Guard Commandant in Washington, D.C., upon Senate confirmation.

“It has been a pleasure serving as the Coast Guard’s Pacific Area commander for the past two years, and I look forward to the opportunity to continue my service as the Coast Guard’s 25^th Commandant,” said Zukunft.

Ray has served as the Pacific Area deputy since 2013. His previous flag assignments include Coast Guard District 14 Commander, service with U.S. Forces Iraq as Director of the Iraq Training and Advisory Mission for the Ministry of Interior, and as the Military Advisor to the Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security.

Ray, a Newport, Ark., native, is a 1981 graduate of the Coast Guard Academy. After an assignment as a deck watch officer aboard Coast Guard Cutter Acushnet, he was selected for Naval Flight Training and earned his wings in 1983.

PACAREA’s area of responsibility encompasses six of the seven continents, 71 countries, and more than 74 million square miles of ocean -- from the U.S. Western States to Asia, and from the Arctic to Antarctica.

The change of command ceremony is a time-honored tradition, which formally restates that the continuity of command will be maintained. It is a formal ritual, conducted before the assembled company of the command. It conveys to the officers, enlisted personnel, civilian employees, and auxiliarists of the Coast Guard that although the authority of command is relinquished by one person and is assumed by another, it is still maintained without interruption.

EDITOR’S NOTE:

Rear Adm. Charles Ray is scheduled to be promoted to vice admiral prior to the ceremony Tuesday morning.

Media interested in attending the ceremony, please contact Chief Warrant Officer Allyson Conroy at 510.437.5682 or Allyson.e.conroy@uscg.mil.

SAN FRANCISCO - The Coast Guard advises mariners and the public to use caution with high surf expected to pass through Northern California Saturday and Sunday

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration issued a high-surf warning for the coastline extending from Sonoma to Monterey County. This means that there is an increased risk for rip currents and sneaker waves on west and northwest facing beaches

The Coast Guard urges mariners to always:

* Stay Informed - The public should be aware of weather conditions and monitor the progress and strength of the storm through local television, radio and internet.  NOAA's site,www.wrh.noaa.gov/mtr/ is a great resource. Check the current and expected weather and water conditions before heading out and be aware that weather conditions can quickly change.

* Wear life jackets while on the water.

* File a float plan with friends, family members and local marinas before heading out. The list should include the number of passengers aboard the vessel, vessel's destination, vessel's description, and expected time of return.

* Always have a working VHF marine radio aboard.

* Carry marine flares aboard the vessel.

* Ensure bilge pumps are operational and vessels are secure for heavy winds and rain.

For more information on boating safety, visit www.uscgboating.org<http://www.uscgboating.org/> .

To the citizens of the San Francisco Bay Area,

I would like to extend a heartfelt thank you to the communities of Alameda, Oakland and San Francisco. My wife and I have called the Bay Area home for the past two years, and have been honored to call you all our neighbors while serving as the Coast Guard’s Pacific Area Commander. 

These communities have embraced my family just as they have embraced all of the 4,000 Coast Guard members and their families that are assigned here and call the Bay Area home.

We work closely with our partner agencies here in the Bay Area to maintain a 24/7 readiness and response stance against threats affecting national security, as well as safety of life and property at sea not only in the Bay Area, but throughout the 74 millions of square miles in the PACAREA area of responsibility, placing the communities of the Bay Area on the front lines of Coast Guard operations.

The Bay Area Coast Guard is comprised of boat stations, a buoy tender, an air station, training centers, three national security cutters and regional headquarters commands that coordinate operations throughout California and the entire Pacific. Our national security cutters, Bertholf, Waesche and Stratton, provide long-range offshore capabilities and regularly conduct counter-drug patrols off the coasts of Central and South America as well as fisheries patrols in Alaska. 

Alameda has a special claim to the Coast Guard family by not only being a Coast Guard City, but by also being home to the first national security cutter, the Coast Guard Cutter Bertholf. Each time one of these cutters deploys to the Eastern Pacific for counter illicit trafficking patrols, or north to the Arctic, they sail through the Golden Gate out to sea. But they come home the communities of the Bay Area.

In 2013 we melded as a community to show the world what the Bay Area has to offer by hosting the 34^th America’s Cup Race, which was held in the heart of the Port of San Francisco. We worked closely with the event organizer and local agencies that operate on the Bay to create a race route that allowed for a safe and secure race while minimizing the impacts to commercial shipping traffic.

During my time in the Bay Area I have witnessed your outpouring of support when we needed our community the most. Our partner agencies and our communities mourned with us when we remembered both Senior Chief Petty Officer Terrell Horne and Petty Officer 3^rd Class Travis Obendorf. Though the circumstances behind both deaths were very different, it reminds us that our jobs are inherently dangerous and we depend on the support of our community agencies to get the mission done, both while deployed and at home.

As I get prepare for my next adventure as the Commandant of the Coast Guard, I am inspired by the way the Bay Area communities have embraced our Coast Guard shipmates and families.  I ask you to join me in welcoming our new Pacific Area Commander, Vice Adm. Charles Ray, as he assumes the mantle of command for the Bay Area’s largest military force.  I am truly grateful to have served in such a caring and vibrant region. 

Sincerely,

Vice Adm. Paul F. Zukunft

SAN FRANCISCO - The U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Bertholf, which will be homeported at Coast Guard Island in Alameda, Calif., arrives in San Francisco, as the Coast Guard's first National Security Cutter. The new cutters will eventually replace the aging 378-foot cutters as the Coast Guard's long-range patrol asset. (Coast Guard photo by Petty Officer Jonathan R. Cilley)	SAN FRANCISCO - A Coast Guard boatcrew aboard a 25-foot Response Boat enforces a safety and security zone on San Francisco Bay during the 34th America's Cup World Series event, Aug. 25, 2012. The America's Cup was first raced in 1851, 45 years before the modern Olympic games. The United States yacht America won, therefore giving the international sailing competition its name. U.S. Coast Guard photo by Petty Officer Zac Crawford.

Vice Adm. Paul F. Zukunft, left, and Admiral Robert J. Papp, center, congratulate Vice Adm. Charles W. Ray on his new position as the commander of Pacific Area at the Change of Command Ceremony held on Coast Guard Island in Alameda, Calif., April 22, 2014. The ceremony, a time-honored military tradition, formally marked the transition of command from Zukunft to Ray. U.S. Coast Guard photo by Petty Officer 3rd Class Loumania Stewart

Members of the Coast Guard Base Alameda color guard present colors during the national anthem at the change of command ceremony on Coast Guard Island in Alameda, Calif., April 22, Vice Adm. Charles W. Ray relieved Vice Adm. Paul F. Zukunft as commander of Coast Guard Pacific Area. Coast Guard photo by Petty Officer 3rd Class Loumania Stewart

Adm. Robert J. Papp, Commandant of the Coast Guard, and the official party render salutes during the opening of the Change of Command Ceremony held on Coast Guard Island in Alameda, Calif., April 22, 2014. Vice Adm. Charles W. Ray assumed command from Vice Adm. Paul F. Zukunft as commander of Coast Guard Pacific Area. Coast Guard photo by Petty Officer 3rd Class Loumania Stewart

ALAMEDA, Calif. – Vice Adm. Charles W. Ray relieved Vice Adm. Paul F. Zukunft as Commander, Coast Guard Pacific Area and Coast Guard Defense Forces West, in a change of command ceremony at Coast Guard Island in Alameda, Calif., April 22, 2014.

“This is not a transition, this is a continuity of leadership,” said Zukunft. “Just as the ceremony we observe today is a continuity of leadership, this is not a change of command -- just a newer, younger face will step in and take my place.”

Zukunft served as the Pacific Area Commander since April 2012, and is leaving to assume the duties as the Coast Guard Commandant in Washington, D.C., upon Senate confirmation.

“It has been a pleasure serving as the Coast Guard’s Pacific Area commander for the past two years, and I look forward to the opportunity to continue my service as the Coast Guard’s 25th Commandant,” said Zukunft.

Ray served as the Pacific Area deputy since 2013. His previous flag assignments include Coast Guard District 14 Commander, service with U.S. Forces Iraq as Director of the Iraq Training and Advisory Mission for the Ministry of Interior, and as the Military Advisor to the Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security.

Ray, a Newport, Ark., native, is a 1981 graduate of the Coast Guard Academy. After an assignment as a deck watch officer aboard Coast Guard Cutter Acushnet, he was selected for Naval Flight Training and earned his wings in 1983.

The change of command ceremony is a time-honored tradition that formally restates that the continuity of command will be maintained. It is a formal ritual, conducted before the assembled company of the command. It conveys to the officers, enlisted personnel, civilian employees, and auxiliarists of the Coast Guard that although the authority of command is relinquished by one person and is assumed by another, it is still maintained without interruption.

PACAREA’s area of responsibility encompasses six of the seven continents, 71 countries, and more than 74 million square miles of ocean -- from the U.S. Western States to Asia, and from the Arctic to Antarctica.

ALAMEDA, Calif.-- Burlap sacks filled with packages of cocaine lie in the hold of a Panamanian fishing vessel in international waters off the coast of Panama in late March.  The drugs were discovered by a boarding team from the Coast Guard Cutter Active. 
The contraband, fishing boat, and five suspected smugglers were turned over the Panamanian authorities.  U.S. Coast Guard photo

ALAMEDA, Calif. – The crew of the Coast Guard Cutter Active seized an estimated 2,300 pounds of cocaine, worth approximately $37 million, in international waters of the Eastern Pacific Ocean some 140 miles off the coast of Panama late last month.

Active, home ported in Port Angeles, Wash., was on routine patrol in the region when it was directed to intercept a suspicious Panamanian fishing vessel sighted earlier by a U.S. Customs and Border Protection P-3 aircraft. A Coast Guard boarding team was launched as Active approached the fishing vessel.  During an inspection of the vessel, the boarding team discovered more than 40 burlap sacks filled with cocaine.  The fishing boat, the contraband, and five suspected smugglers were turned over to Panamanian authorities. 

"I am extremely proud of this crew.  They have continually lived up to the cutter's nickname, the ‘Li'l Tough Guy’," said Cmdr. Philip Crigler, Active’s commanding officer. “Through their tenacity we have had great success on this patrol keeping illegal drugs from reaching the shores of the United States."

The Coast Guard deploys assets to both the Eastern Pacific Ocean and Caribbean Sea in coordination with other law enforcement agencies and partner nations in the regions to disrupt the flow of illegal drugs into the United States.  Overall coordination of surveillance and patrols is done by an interagency task force based in Florida.  U.S. maritime law enforcement and the interdiction phase of counter-smuggling operations in the Eastern Pacific occurs under the tactical control of the 11th Coast Guard District headquartered in Alameda.

ALAMEDA, Calif. - Coast Guard and local agencies are responding to a plane crash near San Pablo Bay after two planes collided in mid-air above the Bay Sunday.

At approximately 4 p.m., the Sector San Francisco Coast Guard command center received a call about a small Cessna and a WWII-era aircraft that had collided. The Coast Guard launched four rescue boat crews and
one rescue helicopter crew and established a temporary safety zone in the water while the Federal Aviation Administration has established a temporary flight-restriction zone in the area.

Debris has been located in the water, but there are no signs of the downed pilot at this time.

The incident is under investigation. 

Mariners in the area are being asked to contact their nearest Coast Guard station if they find any debris in the water.