Proceedings

Winter 2009-10 Vol. 66, Number 4

East Coast

10 Partners in Compliance
by LT Tiffany Johnson

East
14 Invigorate Port Partnerships

Coast
by CDR Sean Carroll, Dr. Joan Weiner, Dr. Gayle Porter, and LT Sara Wallace

20 Improving Commercial Towing Vessel Safety

by Dr. Lewis Fisher, Jr.

22 Eye of the Tiger

by Dr. Lewis Fisher, Jr.

25 Improving Coast Guard SAR Capability

by LT Myles Greenway

28 Joint Vessel Targeting

by LCDR Norm Witt

West
32 Risk Reduction Program
by LCDR Richard Molloy

Coast
West Coast

34 Industry Standards of Care

by CDR Mark McCadden and Mr. John Dwyer

Gulf Coast

36 Florida Keys Dive Safety Initiative

by LT David Ambos

39 Port Partnerships
by LT E. Thomas Ayoub

Gulf
Coast
 Looking Out
for Seafarers
Gulf
Coast
The U.S. Coast Guard
and seafarer welfare
organizations.
by LCDR NORBERT JOHN PAIL, JR. FATHER SINCLAIR OUBRE, J.C.L.
U.S. Coast Guard Sector Houston/Galveston President, Apostleship of the Sea of the United States of America

The Coast Guard provides unique benefits to the na- as ship visitors, and they offer solidarity, corporal gifts,
tion because of its distinctive blend of military, hu- and spiritual gifts to support these visiting mariners.
manitarian, and civilian law enforcement capabilities. Many times these gifts contain a local “flavor” to orient
Quite frequently, Coast Guard units blend the funda- the seafarer to his or her present environment.
mental roles of maritime safety, maritime security, mar-
itime mobility, national defense, and the protection of Other resources these organizations offer include ac-
natural resources to meet the needs of the country and cess to free transportation and conveniences such as
the seafarer simultaneously. high-speed Internet and pre-paid phone cards. Many
seafarer centers also have big screen televisions with
At times, however, mariner needs may be outside of international channels.
Coast Guard boundaries.1 This is where outside organ-
izations, such as Apostleship of the Sea, The Mission to The relations between the local Coast Guard and sea-
Seafarers, and other seafarer welfare organizations get farer centers keep the needs of the seafarer at the top of
involved. the list of port priorities.

Seafarer Welfare Organizations Seafarer Access and Living Conditions

Seafarer welfare organizations, whether faith-based or With the advent of the Maritime Transportation Secu-
secular, welcome rity Act of 2002 (MTSA), critical facilities must outline
journeyers into how access is restricted to secure areas. Coast Guard re-
ports throughout quirements outline that owners of these facilities ensure
the United States. coordination occurs to provide for the needs of
They offer hospi- crewmembers and the vessel in advance of the vessel’s
tality to mariners arrival. Seafarer welfare organizations provide Coast
who may not have Guard officials feedback when the coordination breaks
seen land for down and the crewmember or vessel becomes stranded.
weeks. These or-
Coast Guard program managers continue to move for-
ganizations work
ward to further facilitate seafarer access. Recently, the
through a collec-
Coast Guard determined that captains of the port
tion of personnel
(COTPs) may mandate that MTSA-regulated facilities
who roll out the
provide reasonable access to seafarers. In cases where a
port’s “welcome
facility denies access to seafarers, charges exorbitant
Coast Guard Chief Warrant Officer Jamie Wil- mat.” These per-
son, Sector Houston/Galveston marine in- sonnel are com-
rates to provide access, greatly limits the hours for ac-
spector, checks a vessel’s medicine chest. All cess, or institutes other overly restrictive policies that
monly referred to
photos U.S. Coast Guard. discourage or refuse access, COTPs may invoke en-

42 Proceedings Winter 2009-10 www.uscg.mil/proceedings

 In the summer of 2008, Coast Guard Sector Houston/Galveston
staff worked with the Apostleship of the Sea to aid a mariner.
Excerpts from the e-mail correspondence follow.

5/25/08 Seafarer’s spouse to Coast 5/28/08 Seafarer’s spouse to Coast Guard 6/4/08 Coast Guard to the president of
Guard Thank you for your great help. Thank you the Apostleship of the Sea in the
Coast Guard, Please help. My husband is very much because the medical attention needed United States
aboard a vessel which is travels (sic) on the high by my husband requires constant oversight. Good morning. Late yesterday, I responded
seas between the United States, Europe, and to an e-mail provided to me from the wife of the
Trinidad. He is very sick with the flu and the 6/3/08 Seafarer’s spouse to Coast third engineer aboard a foreign-flagged chemi-
symptoms are causing him to slowly lose his Guard cal carrier. The Coast Guard has been in contact
hearing. He is not able to see a qualified doctor Coast Guard, I am sorry if I interrupted with the engineer and with the wife and there
because such doctors are not available onboard you again but my husband has been diagnosed are some areas of concern that are outside of
the vessel or in Trinidad. by the doctor with a perforated eardrum. He is Coast Guard jurisdiction.
Now that the vessel has returned to the diagnosed as being fit for work but is suffering I bring this to your attention in order to
Gulf Coast of the United States, immigration through a lot of pain. alert you of this ongoing situation, and of the
personnel are unable to sign the referral form be- Can you help us to have my husband sent reference I made to your good organization.
fore the vessel leaves for the high seas. I do not home and have the company provide medical as-
sistance? The ship will be in the United States
Signed ... Chief, Inspections Division, Coast
know what to do because he will not be able to
again on June 10. I am very sorry for my inter-
Guard Sector Houston/Galveston.
continue his work as a seafarer with a loss of
hearing, and my family of three children greatly ruption but I do not know where to seek assis- 6/4/08 Apostleship of the Sea in the
needs his full health and support. Please help me tance. I hope you understand. United States to Coast Guard
and my husband. I will keep an eye out for the vessel. Thanks
for thinking about us. I will try to visit the ship
when she comes into our port.
6/3/08 Coast Guard to seafarer’s spouse
Ma’am, researching the Notices of Arrival
Signed … Wife of foreign crewmember

supplied to the Coast Guard by the master, I see I will also pass the word along to other sea-
aboard a foreign-flagged chemical carrier calling

that the vessel trades regularly in the United farer welfare organizations that might be able
on the port of Houston in May 2008.

5/28/08 Coast Guard to seafarer’s States. May I direct you to seafarer representa- to help while the vessel is visiting another coun-
spouse tives, who will be able to provide you with op- try.
Ma’am, we have inspected the vessel aboard tions of how to handle such requests? ...
which your husband works. During our crew
Signed ... president of the Apostleship of the
... At the end of our correspondence, I have Sea in the United States.
interviews and competency assessments, we included a website that lists the people who min-
found that he is able to perform the tasks of his ister to the needs of seafarers like your husband.
6/25/08 Resolution
license and watchstanding duties, which are I routinely work with two of the Texas port
Vessel arrives in Vancouver, Wash. Through
those of a third engineer. Your husband’s medical chaplains listed on this page. If you are not able
the efforts of the Coast Guard, the Apostle-
needs are presently being taken care of by doc- to establish communication with a port chap-
ship of the Sea, the owner of the vessel, and
tors here in Houston. lain, please let me know.
shipping agents, the third engineer of con-
Signed … Chief, Inspections Division, Coast cern is removed and provided the necessary
Guard Sector Houston/Galveston. medical treatment in his country of origin.
6/3/08 Seafarer’s spouse to Coast Guard
Thank you very much. Indeed the informa-
tion you gave me will give a lot of help for us.
Thank you and God bless.

forcement action until seafarer access provisions are de- Without specific international standards for living and
termined to be adequate. working conditions, port stakeholders are left asking
questions like: Do problems exist when vessels do not
Additionally, living conditions on a vessel are deter- meet the hyper-clean standards Americans are used to?
mined by the economic health of the operator and the Is there sufficient quantity and variety of food, or are
cultural traditions of the crew. What is “clean” for one the dietary needs of the crews being put at risk?
crew may be considered unhealthy or substandard by
another. It is much easier to determine whether the lifeboat
davits work than to know if the vessel provides ade-
quate accommodations.
www.uscg.mil/proceedings Proceedings Winter 2009-10 43
 Ship visitors
S i n cl a i r
Oubre and
D o r e e n
Badeaux
welcome a
vessel’s
master to
port.

Help Is on the Way

Sector Houston/Galveston marine inspector ENS Josh The regulation entitled the Maritime Labour Conven-
Love checks to ensure all seafarers aboard the vessel tion of 2006 is expected to standardize the living and
meet minimal age standards.
working conditions for mariners while at sea. These
regulations are the first attempt to set minimum re-
quirements for seafarers, including conditions of em-
ployment, hours of work and rest, accommodations,
recreational facilities, food, health protection, medical
care, welfare, and social security protection.

If ratified, much of the present ambiguity will be quan-

tified by these new regulations, and the dilemmas port
state control inspectors currently face will be signifi-
cantly reduced.

Future Focus
Cooperation among the Coast Guard and seafarer wel-
fare agents allows the concerns of mariners to be
Ship crewmembers use the resources at one of the nation’s sea- echoed throughout multiple communities. As resources
farer centers.
increase and more organizations get involved, concerns
can be better acted upon.
SPEAK SOFTLY AND CARRY A TWO-BY-FOUR
Utilizing this interconnected network, which includes
secular, spiritual, and regulatory representatives, solu-
Fr. Sinclair Oubre, J.C.L.: In the religious community, we like to use
tions can be reached that are in the best interests of the
the phrase, “Speaking truth to power.” However, I find it never hurts to

mariner, fellow crewmembers, the employer, and the

have a nice two-by-four to get the attention of those to whom truth is

port community in general.

being spoken.

In the maritime world, the U.S. Coast Guard in general (and port state
About the authors:
LCDR Pail has served in the U.S. Coast Guard for 15 years and has re-
control inspectors in particular) are tremendous assets in promoting
ceived the senior marine inspector designator. He has inspected foreign-
seafarer welfare, and make great “moral” two-by-fours.
flagged vessels and has written national policies for the inspection of
foreign-flagged vessels for more than 13 years of his Coast Guard ca-
On one particular occasion, the radio officer of a flag of convenience
ship called me on a Saturday evening. He was concerned that a con- reer. He is currently serving within Coast Guard Sector Houston/Galve-
crete patch that was installed on the raw water intake would not hold ston’s Prevention Department.

Father Oubre is the president of the Apostleship of the Sea of the United
when they went back out to sea. Though the Coast Guard inspectors
States of America, a membership organization dedicated to promoting
had visited the vessel earlier in the ship’s port call, they were unaware
the Catholic ministry to the people of the sea. Additionally, he holds a
of the patch because it was under the deck plates.
merchant marine credential as AB-limited. He continues to sail during
I contacted our Marine Safety Unit, and the watch officer immediately his vacation from parish work. He is the pastor of St. John the Evangel-
contacted the port state control team. Within a few minutes, they were ist Catholic Church in Port Arthur, Texas, and St. Paul Mission in
back with me. I passed on the information that was relayed to me, and Sabine Pass, Texas. He is also the unlicensed deck department member
they made a follow-up visit to the engine room, “just to look around.” of the USCG Merchant Marine Personnel Advisory Committee.
Endnote:
They found the patch, and made arrangements for the ship to complete 1. The guidelines Coast Guard inspectors use to assess the shipboard condi-

tions available to seafarers are published in the International Labour Of-

fice’s Merchant Shipping (Minimum Standards) Convention, 1976.
more permanent repairs.

44 Proceedings Winter 2009-10 www.uscg.mil/proceedings