Posts Tagged ‘Sector Houston-Galveston’
Coast Guard medevacs man from cruise ship 180-miles off Galveston coast
HOUSTON - The Coast Guard medevaced a 52-year-old male off the Carnival cruise ship Conquest, approximately 180-miles southeast off the coast of Galveston, Saturday, Nov. 29, 2008.
Coast Guard assists Liberty County Sheriff’s Office with medevac
HOUSTON - The Coast Guard assisted the Liberty County Sheriff’s Office with a medevac of a 49-year-old female at the intersection of highways 146 and 105 in Liberty County, Friday, Nov. 28, 2008.
Coast Guard Launches First Response Assets after Hurricane Ike
KATY, Texas - The U.S. Coast Guard has launched its first air assets and crews into the areas hit by hurricane Ike, Saturday, Sept. 13.
The Coast Guard, in conjunction with the Texas Air National Guard, Texas Task Force 1, and the California Air National Guard, has rescued 103 people and nine pets to date.
Earlier this morning, assets and crews which had been prepositioned before the storm at the following locations were ordered into the area.
From Air Station Corpus Christi:
* five HH-65C helicopters
* one Falcon jet
From Air Stations New Orleans and Mobile:
* four HH-60s
* six HH-65s
The Coast Guard’s number one priority is search and rescue. The crew on board the Falcon jet will do a first post-storm overflight assessment and serve as command and control. Meanwhile, the helicopters are ready and prepared for search and rescue operations. The Coast Guard will focus on environmental protection and reopening the Port of Houston-Galveston as quickly as possible.
The Coast Guard is working with our federal, state and local partner agencies to respond to the effects of Hurricane Ike. “Every Coast Guardsman is dedicated to assisting people in distress, protecting the environment and opening the port as quickly as possible. This is an ‘All Hands on deck’ evolution,” said Capt. William Diehl, Sector Houston-Galveston Commander. “All emergency workers are trained, prepared and are actively engaged in this operation.”
Houston-Galveston Port Under Condition Yankee Changes to Zulu Tonight
HOUSTON -In preparation for potential severe weather associated with Hurricane IKE, Coast Guard Sector Houston-Galveston will set Port Condition Yankee effective 11 a.m. local time.
The Coast Guard anticipates gale force winds to make landfall within 24 hours, the port is now closed to all inbound traffic.
Self propelled oceangoing vessels over 500 gross tons, oceangoing barges and their supporting tugs desiring to remain in port must have an approved Application to Remain in Port. Vessels meeting the criteria above that do not have a Coast Guard approved Application to Remain in Port must contact Sector Houston-Galveston at (713) 671-5184 immediately.
A safety zone is in effect throughout the Houston-Galveston Captain of the Port (COTP) zone to include the ports of Houston, Galveston, Freeport and Texas City. Vessels operating in these ports should be aware that their voyages may be directed by Coast Guard representatives in order to keep the port safe and secure. The Houston-Galveston COTP Zone is defined in Title 33 of the Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) Part 3.40-28.
Vessels, facilities, agents, and pilots shall review the appropriate portion of the Sector Houston-Galveston Port Pullout of the Storm Preparedness and Response Plan, and take appropriate actions. The Port Pullout, along with helpful storm preparation checklists, is available on Homeport at: http://homeport.uscg.mil/houstongalveston as part of the Severe Weather Port Pull-out, which can be found under the Local Contingency Plans section.
Port Condition Zulu will be set at 11 p.m., September 11, 12 hours before gale force winds are expected to make landfall in the COTP zone. VTS Houston-Galveston operations will be suspended at 5 a.m , Friday, Sept. 12.
If you have a specific issue regarding vessel movements and operations and/or their priorities, please use your Port Coordination Team Representative (PCT) to relay that concern to us; we will be using the PCT to effectively coordinate vessel movements.
Coast Guard sets Port Condition X-ray for Houston-Galveston
HOUSTON -In preparation for potentially severe weather, the Captain of the Port for Sector Houston-Galveston has set Port Condition X-Ray effective immediately. Anticipating gale force winds to make landfall within 48 hours, all vessel owners and operators shall enact their plans to moor or anchor their vessels, or put to sea, in preparation of the severe weather associated with Hurricane Ike.
A safety zone is in effect throughout the Houston-Galveston Captain of the Port (COTP) zone to include the ports of Houston, Galveston, Texas, Freeport, Texas and Texas City, Texas. Vessels operating in these ports should be aware that their voyages and operations may be directed by Coast Guard representatives in order to keep the port safe and secure. The Houston-Galveston COTP Zone is defined in Title 33 of the Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) Part 3.40-28.
Self propelled oceangoing vessels over 500 gross tons, oceangoing barges and their supporting tugs desiring to remain in port must have an approved Application to Remain in Port. Vessels meeting the criteria above that do not have a Coast Guard approved Application to Remain in Port must contact Sector Houston-Galveston at (713) 671-5184 immediately.
Vessels, facilities, agents, and pilots shall review the appropriate portion of the Sector Houston-Galveston Port Pullout of the Storm Preparedness and Response Plan, and take appropriate actions. The Port Pullout, along with helpful storm preparation checklists, is available on Homeport at: http://homeport.uscg.mil/houstongalveston as part of the Severe Weather Port Pull-out, which can be found under the Local Contingency Plans section.
Port Condition Yankee may be set via subsequent Marine Safety Information Bulletin at 1100, September 11, 24 hours before gale force winds are expected to make landfall in the COTP zone.
If you have a specific issue regarding vessel movements and operations and/or their priorities, please use your Port Coordination Team Representative (PCT) to relay that concern to us; we will be using the PCT to effectively coordinate vessel movements.
Coast Guard medevacs injured man southeast of Galveston
HOUSTON - The Coast Guard medevaced a 44-year-old man off the Sabine, a 784-foot ship, located 50-miles southeast of Galveston, Thursday, August 21, 2008.
A watchstander at Sector Houston-Galveston received a call at 12:57 p.m. from the ship’s captain reporting a crewmember had been injured.
An Air Station Houston HH-65C rescue helicopter was launched. The patient was hoisted by the helicopter crew and transported to UTMB Galveston Hospital.
Houston area waterways re-opened with restrictions
HOUSTON - The Coast Guard has completed an initial assessment of the Houston Ship Channel, Port Freeport, Port of Galveston, Port of Texas City and Gulf Intracoastal Waterway.
- The Houston Ship Channel is open to inbound and outbound traffic for all ships that draft less than 38 feet
- The Port of Galveston is open to inbound and outbound traffic for all ships that draft less than 38 feet
- The Port of Texas City is open to inbound and outbound traffic for all ships that draft less than 35 feet
- Port Freeport is open to unrestricted ship movement
- The Gulf Intracoastal Waterway is open to barge traffic
The lifting of these restrictions pend more detailed surveys by the Army Corps of Engineers over the next few days. “The use of the Houston-Galveston Port Coordination Team (PCT) process has worked very well in prioritizing ship movements and conveying critical facility operations,” said Steve Nerheim, Vessel Traffic Coordinator at Sector Houston-Galveston.
Houston/Galveston Captain of the Port Begins Port Re-opening Process
HOUSTON - The Houston Ship Channel currently remains closed, but the Captain of the Port has commenced the re-opening process. The port community faces six primary post-storm response phase tasks:
1. Search and rescue
2. Immediate relief for personnel who have catastrophic loss
3. Initial damage assessment
4. Restoration of operational capability
5. Establishing an emergency logistics system as necessary to support relief operations
6. Maintenance of command, control and communication functions
The post-storm response phase and subsequent process of re-opening the port will be managed by the Port Coordination Team at Coast Guard Sector Houston-Galveston. The Captain of the Port anticipates setting Port Condition Recovery once conditions allow and damage assessment surveys will begin at that time. Once the surveys are complete, port restrictions will be eased as conditions allow.
* Ships Waiting to Enter Port: 22
* Ships Waiting to Depart Port: 04
For more information concerning the specifics of the port re-opening process, please visit the Homeport website.