Journal Entry – Aug. 25, 2008 – Arctic Ocean
The Coast Guard is extending High Endurance cutter operations from the Bering Sea into the Chukchi Sea, the Beaufort Sea, and the Arctic Ocean. This operation supports the Department of Homeland Security’s efforts to extend maritime safety and security to the Arctic region in the face of retreating polar sea ice. The Coast Guard Cutter Hamilton will be the lead cutter in the United States’ push to extend security to U.S. Arctic waters. As part of this historic operation, the Hamilton is providing daily journal entries.
Position: Artic Ocean, 66-50.8N, 168-05.4W
Weather: Winds: NW 28kts. Temp: 40 F. Sea Temp: 51 F. Seas/Swells: 8 feet.
Crew Journal:
Written by MK1 Keith Madle
At approximately 1510 MK3 Judson Goodwin was doing a round of the engine room when he found the inboard side of the #1 Main Diesel Engine (MDE) exhaust had caught on fire and was shooting flames out of the exhaust. MK3 Goodwin immediately punched out (secured) the MDE and notified the EOW. I grabbed a PKP fire extinguisher and proceeded to extinguish the fire on the main diesel engine. The EOW called to the bridge to set General Emergency (GE) for a fire in the engine room. The HAMILTON crew manned up their GE billets to prepare to fight the fire in ample time. Over the past month, we have been tirelessly training to prepare and fight any causality that may arise. The crew acted promptly and all the hard work paid off. The fire was immediately put out with the PKP extinguisher and we stood down from GE after conformation that the fire was out. The Main Propulsion personal then commenced rebuilding the #1 MDE exhaust system to get the HAMILTON ready to dodge ice burgs as we enter the Arctic Circle this evening. The engineers have been working constantly to ensure our propulsion is ready to handle any emergencies that may arise in this area of the world that no other Coast Guard 378′ has gone before. We are charting new territory for the Coast Guard’s homeland security mission and we fully realized that as we cross into the Artic Ocean. The Engineering Department runs training for these situations twice a week, just to be prepared for a fire in the engine room, one of the worst casualties a Coast Guard Cutter could have.
