ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. – The crew of Coast Guard Cutter Venturous, homeported in St. Petersburg, is scheduled to return Jan. 17 at 9 a.m. after a busy 55-day patrol in the Windward Pass and Florida Straits.
Venturous patrolled aggressively between Cuba, Haiti, and the Bahamas in support of Alien Migrant Interdiction and Counter-Drug operations. The ship’s capabilities were enhanced by its embarked HH-65 helicopter aviation detachment from Coast Guard Air Station Miami, which flew routine reconnaissance missions and assisted with the identification of vessels.
Venturous saw more than 270 Haitian and Cuban migrants cross its decks and processed six suspected migrant smugglers during the patrol. Many of the migrants were detected on grossly overloaded sailing vessels and were transferred to the safety of Venturous’ flight deck where they were provided food, water, shelter, and medical care. They were later repatriated to Port-au-Prince, Haiti.
Although Venturous was underway for the majority of the holiday season, the crew did enjoy several port calls, including stops in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba and Puerto Plata, Dominican Republic, as well as Miami and Key West, Fla. During the last week at sea, the crew patrolled the waters between Key West and Cuba searching for vessels attempting to illegally enter the United States.
Venturous is a 210-foot Medium Endurance Cutter under the command of Cmdr. Robert K. Thompson. The cutter has a crew of 12 officers and 68 enlisted personnel.
