ST. MARYS, Ga. – A local Coast Guard homeland security unit is receiving an award for its efforts in securing ports, waterways and numerous high-value U.S. Naval assets.
The crew of Maritime Safety and Security Team Kingsbay (91108) will be receiving the Coast Guard Unit Commendation for their work securing waterways and shore-side facilities during the G-8 Summit in Sea Island, Ga.; the Republican National Convention in New York; and the Presidential Inauguration in Washington to name a few.
MSST Kingsbay’s crew also assisted in recovery efforts in New Orleans shortly after Hurricane Katrina by securing area waterways and hurricane response assets and assisting local law enforcement with search and rescue operations.
The crew of MSST Kingsbay will be awarded for their efforts from June 2003 to July 2006 for numerous homeland security missions. The crew of MSST Kingsbay have been deployed all across the East Coast to assist in securing ports and waterways during two National Football League Super Bowls, two Major League Baseball All Star Games and conducted over 150 escorts on high-value U.S. Naval assets.
The award will be presented by a representative from the Coast Guard’s Atlantic Area Command in Portsmouth, Va. Atlantic Area Command is MSST Kingsbay’s parent command and oversees all Coast Guard operations east of the Rocky Mountains and in operating theaters all around the world.
MSST Kingsbay is a domestic, mobile unit that possesses specialized training and capabilities to perform a broad spectrum of port safety and security operations. MSSTs offer operational commanders a quick-response capability that meets changing threat environments in our nation’s harbors, ports, and internal waterways.
MSST Kingsbay is staffed with approximately 100 active duty and reserve Coast Guard men and women, ready to respond or deploy, 24 hours a day, seven days a week; and are trained to operate under the threat of hostile chemical, biological or radiological attacks.
Specific capabilities of this unit include high-speed, armed homeland security boats, canine explosive detection teams, an underwater detection dive team and shore-side protection teams. They also can deploy from helicopters by sliding down a rope to a non-compliant vessel in a process known as vertical insertion.
Technorati Tags: Coast Guard, Hurricane Katrina, MSST Kingsbay
