Waterside Ops, Potomac Style
By PA2 Judy L. Silverstein, USCG
U. S. Coast Guard
February 22, 2005
WASHINGTON, D.C. - As the nation's capitol had its first major snowfall of the season Jan. 19, 2005, many noted it was also the day before the Inauguration, where security reached historic proportions.
Beneath the Theodore Roosevelt Memorial Bridge, three Safe boats from Station Washington carefully maneuvered through icy and choppy waters on the lookout for anything out of the ordinary. The coastline a white blur, the radio crackled with intensity as crews used advanced equipment to scan the shoreline and bridge supports.
Boatswain's Mate Chief Alex Malaguti maneuvered the 25-foot boat, outfitted with twin engines. Because of slick conditions on the deck, the cabin became a welcome refuge on this vitally important patrol.
"We're practicing," said Lt.j.g. Chris White, executive officer. He was noticeably cryptic about details given the level of security attached to the mission.
The GPS and radar screens glowed with a colored intensity heightened in the virtual whiteout. We hovered alongside Haines Point in West Potomac Park. In the storm, "The Awakening", a somewhat unusual statue of a 100-foot giant half-buried underground, was barely but eerily visible. Its 17-foot arm elicited some shared laughter inside the cabin. Outside, large snowflakes fell almost faster than the windshield wipers could move. The crew was snug in survival suits, the black and orange colors clearly visible even in the frosty weather. Even the gear required some learned dexterity.
Just getting into the layered dry suit can be a two-person evolution. White pointed out its benefits and tips on getting into the gear. The suit also provides welcome protection from just about every element; including an unexpected dip into the icy water, he said.
The radio crackled. "Station Washington, this is Activities Baltimore."
The Chief held his hand up, signaling for silence in the cabin. Given his intensity, there was no question he was in charge for this patrol. Malaguti relayed reports of protestors in Lady Bird Johnson Park. The Coast Guard has been requested for a show of force. Deftly, he maneuvered the vessel toward the Virginia side of the river.
Twin 225-HP, four-stroke outboard motors allow the boats to reach speeds approaching 50 knots, and "they can turn on a dime," changing direction at high speed, White said.
The speed allows the boats to race quickly across the area of responsibility (AOR), which reaches from Interstate 95 and the Woodrow Wilson Bridge in Alexandria, Va. past Reagan National Airport and the shoreline of the Pentagon, to the western edge of Georgetown. It also includes the Anacostia River, past the Washington Navy Yard and vitally important assets.
"This is not a boring job," said White.
The temperature gauge registers 18 degrees. White and the Chief are technically Florida residents, a fact that brings on some shared laughter. "Nice day for a river patrol," said Chief, laughing heartily. That comment elicited more banter about the balmy conditions and some more spurts of laughter.
A crew of five was onboard practicing for the Inauguration events. Three are reservists from Activities Baltimore. The crew was joined by two other vessels from MSST 91108. No stranger to events drawing special attention to the security of the capitol coastline, Station Washington crews have sometimes borrowed boats and crew members from other units within D-5 occasionally using Title X Reservists.
"Established in the wake of 9/11, we are a multi-mission station with a homeland security emphasis," said White. "We have been fortunate in that our chain of command recognizes we sometimes need extra people for significant events involving national security. "
Even in the blustery weather a lone boats puttered along in the Boundary Channel, easily recognized by the Chief. Further down near the mouth of the Anacostia River, a cruise ship with twinkling white lights drifted to the starboard side of our boat. Crews are always alert for anything unusual, said White. Without going into many details, he said the Inaugural mission used many capabilities for which, crew members have trained extensively.
Even the Safe boat's shallow draft - only 34 inches - allowed the crew to get in close to the shoreline that snakes around the monuments, memorials and precious icons of American history. The late January exercises were no exception, as crews practiced a drill specially tailored to Inaugural concerns.
"If need be, we have the authority to go ashore," White said. "Most of our members are deputized." If the Potomac is iced over, crews can also conduct vehicle patrols, he said. Armed with 9 mm pistols, M-16 rifles and 12 gauge shotguns, they are highly trained in a variety of skills Even the Safe boats have fore and aft mounts for M-60 machine guns. But to keep things from becoming routine, crews avoid regularly-scheduled patrols.
"You don't want to tip your hand," said White, as we passed Buzzard's Point and Coast Guard Headquarters.
And while Washington sees relatively few oceangoing vessels, it has plenty of local activity on its rivers. That includes tug boats pulling construction barges, river cruise ships, rowing teams, and bass fishermen. Although the station is crewed by about 26 active duty members, it has been supplemented with reservists during the past year from such far-flung spots as Florida and North Carolina. About 75 crewmembers stand radio watch and conduct patrols. Division 1 and 14 auxiliarists have also been trained to stand radio watch and flotillas help extend the eyes and ears of the Coast Guard patrolling the river.
The waterborne nature of Station Washington's missions is ideally suited to work in tandem with many federal and local agencies, said White. The 55th presidential inauguration was no exception.
Despite plummeting temperatures and chilly conditions, crews practice along the snowy shoreline of the Potomac in the shadow of the Lincoln Memorial, the orange hulls just about the only color break in the wintry weather. And throughout the week's festivities, crews played a vital role in a layered plan of defense plan for the nation's capitol. Although a Joint Task Force monitored law enforcement transmissions and relayed messages from an undisclosed location in Virginia, White said crews were already used to working in concert with other agencies.
"We have many capabilities and driving boats is one of them," he said. "It gives us a maneuverability that can be very attractive to other agencies and they often use us as a platform for their work."
Currently, Station Washington is headquartered in a cramped 1,000-sqaure-foot, two-room building on Bolling Air Force Base where the boats are docked at the recreational marina. The nature of its mission requires personnel to maintain rooms at the base hotel for on-call personnel.
"If something significant occurs, we can have our people mobilized almost immediately," said White.
That, he said, is part of their allure.
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