Demise of the Auxilary help?

F

Freddy

Member
exMember
Joined
Nov 14, 2001
RO Number
6704
Messages
260
(Footnote, spent 11 years in the USCG AUX, ending around 1989, left because it was getting "political")

No more tows from the USCG Aux on Lake Lewisville, TX as a private 'tow' service was opened a couple of years ago according to a Flotilla Staff Officer. This could (and reportedly has) even meant standing by for several hours while waiting for the commerical service.

While I don't believe the Aux should be in competition with private enterprise, it appears the order not to tow might be a little too excessive.

The two combined Flotilla's on the lake reportedly are down to only three 'Operational Vessels', from a high of twenty-three a few years ago.

On Lake Texoma, Jnue 10th the Aux couldn't be raised by radio to report a navigational hazard (hanging power or phone line in a loop under the main traffic span of the bridge). I had heard them giving the hourly report only 20 minutes earlier. I attempted to call the Aux first as the Game Wardens typically do not monitor recreational VHF and the Aux supposedly can contact them. Subsequently called a marina office. It is my understanding the Flotilla there is severely understaffed also.

Has the 'new' Aux, with background checks and on the water constrictions run people off?

Fred
 
Just a couple of comments:

There was a lawsuit filed by a commercial towing company against the Coast Guard. As a result, the USCG and Auxiliary are not permited to tow disabled recreational vessels. The only exception would be if they were in danger of collision or running aground, i'e stuck in a channel. In that case, we are only allowed to tow them out of danger. We are not a free towing service. Boaters need to call Sea Tow or Tow Boat US.

Auxiliary vessels on patrol do not take calls directly from recreational vessels unless we are already in communication with them. The proper procedure in an emergency is to hail the Coast Guard on 16 and wait for a response or call the local station via cell phone. Auxiliary vessels on patrol take direction from the station, sector or group we are under orders from.

I can't comment on the number of Auxiliary Facilities in your area. We have quite a few in my area and work closely with the regular Coast Guard.
 
This is a very hot topic hear on Texoma now. There are 7 facility's in my flotilla and that slows us down a lot.
Will be interesting when the new Auxiliary Captain takes over in September as he is a long time Aux member.
 
Michael:

This is the first I've heard on any law suits by towing companies. Can you provide more specifics such as when and where? I'd like to look up the decision.

My information was that a restriction, not prohibition was imposed by the CG's Maritime SAR Assistance Policy and that Auxiliary can tow any boat they come upon if the boat has not had previous contact with CG or a tower.

Can you clarify this?

Gene
 
quote:
Auxiliary vessels on patrol do not take calls directly from recreational vessels
Click to expand...

Gee Mike, what are you there for then?
 
I agree with Freddy...what are they there for?? In woodbridge, VA they are rude, arrogant and will promptly let you know that they do not need any help from a lowly person like me...

What I saw was a Navy "wannabe" who screamed at his volunteer crew, made them stand side by side, while he refueled, would not allow them to speak to me ( I was going to ask about the voluntary boat check) and then screamed at me as I moved his line to keep it from snagging across the other side of the pier.

I was later then lectured that they were "patrolling" on behalf of Homeland Security (there is an electric powerplant up the Potoamc, and that I needed to stand away from his craft, before he called the authorities.

I simply walked away in disgust. The marina owner later commented, that things "have really changed".

Perhaps a one shot deal, don't know, but it will be a long time before I approach them again, to ask a question or try to lend a hand.

dave
 
I hope they're not volunteering just for boating on the government's expense.
 
I remember a post hear years ago where Les said this was the case where private towers were available. I understand the tow companies not wanting government competition with their business.

Dave, that's horrible. I don't see how or why the volunteers on that boat would put up with that. I too have requested courtesy inspections on line and through my marina where an aux group dry stacks their boat. Never got a response either way. I wonder what they are there for too.

A friend of mine works in an NC nuke power plant. She says the security at her place is very tight. Can't imagine the CG aux could be much help here but my experience is limited.
 
I don't have the actual case info but I can look into it. I believe the lawsuit was brought by Sea Tow and the Coast Guard agreed to stop towing. I don't think there was a court order.

The behavior that kd3pc described is way out of line. Everyone in the Auxiliary is a civilian volunteer. We have no ranks, we don't salute, etc. There is no 100 yard restriction away from an auxiliary vessel like there is for a Coast Guard and military vessels.

Please let me clarify "Auxiliary vessels on patrol do not take calls directly from recreational vessels" What I meant is this. We monitor 16. If we hear a distress call or see an incident on the water, we will immediately proceed to the scene. We call the CG authority who has our radio guard. In my case, it's Sector NY, to let them know that we are responding and provide whatever details are available. We have guidelines to follow with regard to what we can and cannot do. For example, an auxiliarist is not permitted to enter the water. We aren't trained or qualified as recue swimmers.

What I meant by not responding directly is this: If you are in distress and you are aware of an auxiliary facility in your area, you should not try to hail it by name. You should call the CG on 16. We will hear the distress call. If you are sinking or on fire and an auxiliary vessel goes by, of course you should try to alert them. What we can't respond to is a call directly to an Auxiliary vessel requesting a tow. We just can't do it anymore unless the disabled boat is in immediate danger.

No auxiliarist should ever be rude to another boater or act as if they were in a position of authority.

When I do Clear Channel Operations, I ask the fisherman very nicely to please clear the channel because a tanker or container ship is coming through the channel. I say "thank you" and "have a nice day" In our area, people are generally polite to the auxiliary and appreciate the work that we do. They wave and we wave back. When we march in parades, people clap and come up to us and say thank you.

Easter, we are not just boating on the government's expense. We only get reimbursed for actual fuel used. We buy our own uniforms and anything we need on the boat including Flags, patrol banners, revolving lights, tow lines, hailers and the rest of the list of items required to be a facility. Each patrol is an average of 8-10 engine hours. There is no compensation for the decrease in value of the boat. We do not get compensated for our time. It's strictly voluntary. I'm not going to say that I don't enjoy it. I love being on the water, whether it's my boat on a patrol, another auxiliary boat or a coast guard boat. I volunteer because I enjoy it, I learn a lot and I feel that I am helping people.

The Auxiliary frees up the regular Coast Guard so they can focus on Homeland Security. The Regular CG has 35,000 members and the Aux has 27,000 doing a lot of the stuff that the CG was able to do prior to 9/11. There was a recent directive from Admiral Allen recognizing the role of the auxiliary and the important work they do.

Like anything else, please don't judge the value of the whole 27,000 member organization based on the action of a few.
 
Here is an excerpt from the "History of the Coast Guard Auxiliary"

http://www.uscg.mil/history/Auxiliary History.html

The 1980s

The new decade opened with two tragic accidents in Tampa Bay, Florida. On the night of January 28, 1980 the Coast Guard tender Blackthorn sank after a collision with the tanker Capricorn, with the loss of twenty-three Coast Guardsmen. On May 9 of the same year the freighter Summit Venture rammed the main span of the Sunshine Skyway Bridge, knocking over twelve hundred feet of roadway into the water and killing thirty-five people. In both cases the Auxiliary helped with SAR operations.

In the spring of 1980 the government of Cuba suddenly announced that it would permit a massive emigration through the port of Mariel. For three weeks a steady stream of small boats of every description, averaging two hundred to three hundred per day, made their way from Cuba to Florida. The Coast Guard mobilized all its resources in the area. Auxiliarists manned radios, performed SAR along the Florida coast, and stood watch at the stations in the Coast Guardsmen's absence.

In 1984, in an effort to set standards for training and efficiency in the Auxiliary, Coast Guard Headquarters initiated the Boat Crew Qualification Program. In order to participate in operations on the water each Auxiliarist would have to pass a rigorous series of courses, supervised by specially-trained Auxiliarists certified as Qualified Examiners (QEs).

The reaction to the new program among Auxiliarists was mixed. Many welcomed the opportunity to get the new training; others were unable or unwilling to commit the time. Another development that sapped enthusiasm was a toughening of Coast Guard policy regarding assists to vessels in trouble. One of the Auxiliary's most common activities had been towing boats that ran out of gas, developed engine trouble, or had other mechanical problems. Pressure from commercial towing firms led the Coast Guard to emphasize that Auxiliarists were authorized to pass towlines to other boats only in genuine emergency situations.

So I guess it wasn't a lawsuit. Just pressure from towing companies. If you don't believe it, call your local Sea Tow operator and ask if they would mind if the Auxiliary started towing people for free.
 
When I was active in the auxiliary, which was about 15 years ago and in the California Delta, our orders were that we could only tow if there was an immediate danger to either life or property. The stated reason was that we were not to compete with the private tow companies. We were allowed to tow someone off the rocks to save damage to the veseel, for example, but we had to stand by until the tow company arrived and turn the tow over to them at that point.

My understanding is that if the auxiliary is operating in an area that has no commercial tow companies then they are allowed to tow.

Rod
 
quote:
Originally posted by MichaelNJ

please don't judge the value of the whole 27,000 member organization based on the action of a few.
Click to expand...


When I joined the Auxiliary in 2003, they were 35,000 strong. Seems there has been quite a bit of attrition. I guess some of that is due to the background security check and stricter requirements to meet in some categories.
 
You're right Flutterby. A lot of the membership is older. Many people retired and moved away. We recently had a member of our flotilla pass away. He was very active in the Auxiliary for over 60 years and in the regular Coast Guard before that. Some people decided not to complete the security package and were disenrolled but not a large percentage.
 
The towing policy for the USCG Auxiliary has not changed, according to the Auxiliary Operations Policy Manual, M16798.3E and US Coast Guard Addemdum, To the US National Search and Rescue Supplement to the IAMSAR.

The policy states that, when the Coast Guard and Auxiliary receive a request for non-emergency assistance, directly or indirectly, they issue a MARB ( Marine Assistance Request Broadcast ) asking for a response from anyone who is wiiling to help. That broadcast is issued on Marine channel 16, then moved over to Marine channel 22A. Commercial towing companies are require to monitor channel 16 and answer accordingly.

This does not preclude the Coast Guard and the Auxiliary to begin preparations to get underway towards the boater in trouble. If a patrol boat is already underway, the Coast Guard and Auxiliary may "start" in the direction of the boater in trouble.

Should someone answer the request for assistance, we ( Coast Guard and Auxiliary ) will make sure the answering party can assist, safely and that they can respond in a timely manner. That doesn not mean that we cannot respond as situations change, ie..drift time before the target may run aground, weather concerns, such as heat, cold. Age of the persons on board, considering exposure to weather. And amount of time that passes without more information or information that changes the case from uncertainty to alert or even to distress.

When we are on active patrol, and we come upon a boater who needs assistance, we may assist if we can without endangering our boat and crew and our call out authority has no higher demand for our services. We do not need permission from our call out authority, nor are we required to call a commercial towing company. We contact our call out to receive a case number and we proceed to assist, ie towing to the nearest safe haven that can assist the boater. We do not, however, refloat a boat without call out approval as we don't work salvage.

These ways of responding to boater's assistance requests are policy. So, if anyone says the Auxiliary no longer tows boats, that is not a true statement. We can, depending upon the situation. And we will respond, monitoring a situation for changes from "uncertainty" to "alert" to "distress". While true that should a commercial towing company respond to a MARB, we will stand back while that company handles their business, providing that they can respond quickly enough so that the boater is not in any danger. For "come upon" cases, we are allowed to assist the boater in anyway we can, including towing.

Jeff K, FC 10-1 D8CR, Lake Texoma.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top