Reservist Magazine is the award-winning official publication of the United States Coast Guard Reserve. Quarterly issues include news and feature articles about the men and women who comprise America's premier national maritime safety and security
Issue link: https://uscgreservist.epubxp.com/i/498190
Operation Panaeid Partnership On November 8th, 2014, members of the Sector Jacksonville Reserve Vessel Boarding and Security Team (VBST), along with members of the Florida Fish and Wildlife Commission (FWC) and Special Agents from National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Office of Law Enforcement, conducted a joint operation – Operation Panaeid -- in the area of St. Augustine, Fla. Operation Panaeid was coordinated by Maritime Enforcement Chief Steve Zukowsky, who leveraged his civilian experience as an FWC Lieutenant, and included more than twenty participants. The joint operation targeted commercial shrimping vessels in and around the St. Augustine Inlet area and focused on their use of the turtle excluder device (TED) attached to their nets. Prior to conducting the boardings, Mr. Robert Butts, Sector Jacksonville's Commerical Fishing Vessel Examiner, provided the group with training on the Commercial Fishing Vessel Safety Examination program. The operation resulted in 3 commercial shrimping vessel boardings and 1 charter fishing vessel boarding. The participating reservists received an orientation in commercial fisheries enforcement while onboard the vessels as well as gaining some initial training covering Turtle Excluder Device (TED) enforcement. One shrimping vessel received a written warning from the FWC for having a TED rigged in the net with an angle exceeding the maximum of 55 degrees. In addition to gaining valuable commercial fishing vessel experience, the operation continued to strengthen the partnerships between Sector Jacksonville and maritime law enforcement officials throughout Northern Florida. — Story by Lt.j.g. Dennis Bradford, Photos by MEC Steve Zukowsky Army installations were so successful they were continued throughout the remaining years of MOL operations, adopted by other Coast Guard MOL units, and eventually were adopted by Container Inspection Training Assist Team for oversight. In June 2004, MOL personnel participated in supporting the 30th G-8 Summit, a high profile meeting of world leaders. The area of responsibility extended from Sea Island, Ga., the site of the summit, to Savannah, Ga., where diplomatic staffs and press corps were assembled; a distance of nearly 90 miles. MOL personnel and boat crews took center stage as vital components of Maritime Security for this international gathering. Waterborne operations that supported the G-8 Summit extended around Sea Island, Jekyll Island, and St. Simons Island, Ga. In February, 2005, Operation Straight-Arm was initiated to provide waterside security for Super Bowl XXXIX. MOL personnel worked with CG active duty personnel as well as 32 other agencies to provide waterside security at Jacksonville Municipal Stadium to make Jacksonville's first Super Bowl a success. The sector also provided 582 enforcement hours during Operation Phoenix, NASA's first shuttle launch since the COLUMBIA disaster. As the operations began to slow down, in September 2013 the personnel numbers at both Blount Island and Station Mayport were reduced in anticipation of the end of the MOL mission. SDM retired its name and the remaining SDM reservists integrated fully with active duty at Station Mayport and Sector Jacksonville. Blount Island personnel continued oversight of MOL/ MPS missions until the last days. After more than eleven years, the MOL mission drew down to a successful conclusion. The ability of Coast Guard reservists to activate and "hit the ground running" is a clear demonstration of the dedication and commitment of our Reserve force. MOL Operations in Jacksonville covered support of Operations Enduring Freedom, Iraqi Freedom, Neptune Shield and New Dawn. The total number of MOL and MPS vessels over the entire period was 466 to include over 8.5 billion square feet of military equipment, as well as 50.3 million pounds of explosives. Despite the huge amount of equipment that transited through the Port of Jacksonville, there was never any loss of Department of Defense equipment due to unsafe packaging or waterside security breaches during the entire MOL operational period from February 2003 – September 2014. This serves as a testament to the expertise and dedication of the hundreds of Reserve personnel activated to support this critical support to the country's national defense. And, it speaks directly to the Reserve Component's motto of Professionalism, Preparedness and Patriotism. — Submitted by Lt. R. Scott Bleicken, Former Supervisor Military Out Load, Jacksonville YNC Laurie Walsh (left) and MSTC Matthew Rouse present Sector Jacksonville with a plaque with the history of the MOL operations as well as the names of all reserve members called to active duty from 2003-2014. Special Agent Richard Chesler of NOAA provides hands on instruction to Lt.j.g. dennis Bradford on the proper installation of the Turtle exclusion device (Ted). Issue 2 • 2015 � RESERVIST 11