Volunteers work DDG 62 availability

NORFOLK, Va. – Volunteers from the Mid-Atlantic Regional Maintenance Center’s (MARMC) Waterfront Operations Department have had a continuous presence aboard USS Fitzgerald (DDG 62) – damaged in a June 2017 collision - since it began repairs at Huntington Ingalls Industries (HII) shipyard in Pascagoula, Miss., last year. The destroyer collided with the Philippine-flagged ACX Crystal leaving extensive starboard damage above and below the waterline. DDG 62 began an Extended Dry-Docking Selected Restricted Availability (EDSRA) at HII-Pascagoula that included restoration, modification and modernization. It’s been a team effort from three major regional maintenance centers in its planning and execution, said MARMC Project Manager Kenneth Millington. He is among MARMC members who volunteered to go to Pascagoula and help lead the EDSRA, which includes more than 400 work items along with the collision repairs. Volunteers can only serve six-month assignments. “The first six months, every day was about learning,” said MARMC Project Manager Brian Campbell. Fitzgerald is scheduled to end its availability in February 2020. Some volunteers have returned to their jobs elsewhere, but are keeping an eye on the progress in case they have to go back to help complete the mission. (Source: Mid-Atlantic Regional Maintenance Center 03/26/19)