Silver Ships delivers RHIB to Eglin

The Air Force has taken delivery of a new firefighting and rescue rigid hull inflatable boat (RHIB) from Silver Ships of Mobile, Ala. The ocean-capable boat has a length of 10.9 metres, a Darley firefighting pump with a rated flow of 2,100 litres of water per minute, and two Mercury Verado 223kW outboard engines that deliver a maximum speed of 43 knots. The RHIB will be operated out of Eglin Air Force Base in Florida. (Baird Maritime 07/09/20)

Venice river dredging contract

Manson Construction Co., Seattle, Wash., was awarded an $8,330,800 firm-fixed-price contract for dredge work in the Mississippi River. Bids were solicited via the internet with three received. Work will be performed in Venice, La., with an estimated completion date of Oct. 30, 2021. Fiscal 2020 civil operations and maintenance funds in the amount of $8,330,800 were obligated at the time of the award. U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, New Orleans, is the contracting activity. (Source: Dod 07/09/20)

State adds $291M to indebtedness

The COVID-19 pandemic has cost the State of Mississippi huge amounts of capital. Before the Legislature ended its session July 1, it passed a bond bill that will add $291M more to the state’s indebtedness. House Bill 1730, sponsored by state Rep. Trey Lamar (R-Senatobia), is lined with projects for agencies, colleges and universities, and even pet projects. The bill has $86.725M in borrowing for universities, $41.5M for state agencies, and $35.9M for community colleges. Among some projects: • $600,000 for improvements to ballfields in Petal; • $18M for a new bridge on the I-20 frontage road and improvements at the Port of Vicksburg; • $2M for Itawamba County for economic improvements, railroad repairs, port repairs and jail site development; • $1.2M for levee improvements for Vicksburg; • $1M to repair Columbus’ city hall building; • $3M in improvements to dams and spillways at state parks. Out of $25M for community colleges, Hinds would receive the most ($3.9M). Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College ($3.44M). The bill would also expand the state’s borrowing power designed to keep military bases from being closed down. The maximum amount of bonds that can be issued for these projects to $77M. The last time the federal government closed/realigned military bases was 2005. Created a “Mississippi Dam Safety Fund” with $1M to fund improvements statewide. As of last year’s financial report, taxpayers owed $5.792B in bond debt. Lawmakers appropriated more than $464M to pay down on that debt. The non-partisan budgetary interest group, Truth in Accounting (TIA), gave the state a grade of ‘D’, ranking it 31st nationwide for fiscal health. Each state taxpayer’s share of the state’s debts is about $10,000, according to TIA’s study. (Source: Pine Belt News 07/08/20) https://www.hubcityspokes.com/news-hattiesburg/legislators-approve-bond-bill-yearly-session-ends

New piers/docks at Rockefeller refuge

Southwest Louisiana’s Rockefeller Wildlife Refuge in Grand Chenier has been a hotbed for public fishing in Cameron Parish. Recently completed recreational enhancements have added three fishing piers/boat docks – two are handicap-accessible. In addition, 84 signs have been added throughout the refuge, including six for educational purposes and 82 for location and navigation. The project is funded by the Louisiana Trustee Implementation Group to restore public recreation impacted by the Deepwater Horizon oil spill. The construction of the project is being implemented by the Louisiana Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority in partnership with LDWF. (Source: La. Dept. Wildlife 07/08/20)  Grand Chenier is about 31 miles east of Cameron. https://www.wlf.louisiana.gov/news/new-fishing-piersboat-docks-open-to-public-at-rockefeller-wildlife-refuge

Cutter heading to new NASP homeport

The Coast Guard cutter Reliance departed Portsmouth (Maine) Naval Shipyard in Kittery on June 6 heading for its new homeport at Naval Air Station (NAS) Pensacola, Fla. After 32 years in Maine, Reliance will continue service with two other medium endurance cutters homeported at NASP, allowing the CG to better leverage efficiencies gained by clustering vessels of the same class. Reliance has shifted homeports several times since its commissioning in mid-1964. (Source: Sea Ways 07/06/20) https://seawaves.com/?p=3247 Coast Guard release: https://content.govdelivery.com/accounts/USDHSCG/bulletins/2941e4f

CG pulls disable swimmer off DI

NEW ORLEANS - The Coast Guard responded to a swimmer in distress near Dauphin Island, Ala., in the afternoon of July 7. Coast Guard Sector Mobile received a report at around 3 p.m. of a female swimmer in distress after reportedly being pulled out by the rip tide off DI's public beach. A CG Aviation Training Center Mobile MH-65 Dolphin Helicopter aircrew arrived on scene and located the swimmer. A rescue swimmer was deployed from the helicopter and swam the unconscious woman to awaiting EMS on shore. She was transported to USA Medical Center where she is in critical condition. Rip currents are powerful currents of water moving away from shore. They can sweep even the strongest swimmer out to sea. The Coast Guard recommends swimmers pay close attention to local conditions, and if caught in a rip current swim parallel to the shore to escape. (Source: Coast Guard 07/08/20)

Metal Shark's $7M PB contract

Gravois Aluminum Boats LLC, doing business as Metal Shark Boats of Jeanerette, La., is awarded a $7,027,703 firm-fixed-price delivery order to previously awarded contract (N00024-17-D-2209) for the construction, shipping and item unique identification and documentation of four 40-foot patrol boats (PB): PB-2001; PB-2002; PB-2003; and PB-2004. Prices were previously established via the indefinite delivery/indefinite quantity contract. Contract modification (A00002) exercised options for the applicable contract line item numbers (i.e., 4000 series) on June 17. Work will be performed in Jeanerette. The contractor will provide expert design, planning and material support services. Work is expected to be completed by April 2023. FY 2020 other Navy procurement funding in the amount of $7,027,703 will be obligated at time of award and will not expire at the end of the fiscal year. Supervisor of Shipbuilding, Conversion and Repair, Gulf Coast, at Pascagoula, Miss., is the contracting activity. (Source: DoD 07/07/20)

Ala. Shipyard's $23M pact for T-AOE 6

Alabama Shipyard has been awarded a $23.7M firm-fixed-price contract for a 96-calendar day shipyard availability for the regular overhaul and drydocking of the fast combat support ship USNS Supply (T-AOE 6). Work will be performed in Mobile, Ala., and is expected to be complete in November. The ship is the lead ship of the Supply-class fast combat support ships. The ship is part of Military Sealift Command’s Naval Fleet Auxiliary Force. (Source: Work Boat 07/07/20) Alabama Shipyard is the largest of any in Mobile.

Halter Marine launches 2 APL(S)

PASCAGOULA, Miss. – In just the past few days, Halter Marine Inc., a company of ST Engineering North America, celebrated multiple milestones on the Auxiliary Personnel Lighter–Small (APL(S)) program. The company launched the first two berthing barges; and erected modules on the third barge. The company’s initial contract was awarded in September 2018 to design and build two units, with options for four more. The first two are expected to be delivered in the fall. The third APL(S) is due to be delivered in the first quarter of 2021. Construction on the fourth vessel is expected to be completed next summer. Each APL launch took place over a two-day period. APLs are often referred to as berthing barges, and used by the Navy to house crewmembers when ships are in port for availabilities and deployment training cycles. (VT Halter Marine 07/07/20)

Bath union meets w/ mediator

BATH, Maine - As the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers (IAM) Local S6 union launches Week #3 of a strike against Bath Iron Works (BIW), union officials met with a federal mediator July 6. Local S6, which represents 4,300 union members, is about 64% of the shipyard’s total workforce. The strike began June 22 after rejecting the 3-year contract proposal over disagreements about the company’s plans to continue hiring subcontractors and proposed changes to worker seniority privileges. Local S6 spokesman Tim Suitter said the union’s negotiating committee discussed the union’s demands with the mediator, but negotiations will remain the same until BIW representative meet with the mediator. Suitter said the shipyard will meet with the mediator this week, but BIW spokesman David Hench declined to comment on when the company plans that meeting. The two entities’ officials have said they are ready to speak, but neither party has made the first move. (Source: Press Herald 07/07/20) https://www.pressherald.com/2020/07/06/striking-biwunion-meets-with-federal-mediator/

Nine ships to be inactivated

ARLINGTON, Va. - The Navy plans to inactivate nine ships in FY 2021, according to a June 30 message to the fleet from the chief of naval operations. The ships to be decommissioned are four littoral combat ships (LCS 1-4), three coastal patrol ships (PC) and one dock landing ship (LSD). The Military Sealift Command will remove from service one fleet ocean tug (T-ATF). As planned in the Navy’s FY-21 budget proposal include Freedom-class LCS - USS Freedom and USS Fort Worth - and Independence-class LCS - USS Independence and USS Coronado. Three of these ships have made major deployments to the western Pacific. The four LCSs are based in San Diego and will be placed in reserve status. The three Cyclone-class PCs to be decommissioned are all based in Mayport, Fla., and used to train crews for the 10 PCs based in the Persian Gulf. The PCs being decommissioned - USS Zephyr, USS Shamal and USS Tornado - will be scrapped. The LSD being decommissioned is USS Fort McHenry, which will be placed in reserve. The move will leave seven ships of the class still in service. The Powhatan-class T-ATF being removed from service is USS Sioux, which will be scrapped. Its removal will leave two T-ATFs in service. The class is being replaced by the Navajo-class towing, salvage and rescue ships. All eight commissioned ships listed are to be decommissioned by March 31, 2021. The Sioux is to be removed from service by Sept. 30, 2021. (Seapower Magazine 07/06/20) https://seapowermagazine.org/navy-to-inactivate-9-shipsin-2021/ Gulf Coast Note: The two Independence LCS were built by  Austal USA of Mobile, Ala.

Okaloosa reefs from RESTORE

OKALOOSA ISLAND, Fla. - Okaloosa County wants to spend $1.2M of BP’s money to expand and construct artificial reef structures 15- to 20-feet below the surface of the Gulf of Mexico in four locations, two off Destin and two off Okaloosa Island. The reefs are designed to attract underwater life and provide an environment for snorkelers and divers, County Coastal Resource Manager Alex Fogg told the NW Florida Daily News. “You never really know what you’re going to see out there,” said Fogg. Fishermen also will be able to utilize the reefs, which attract bait fish and possibly tarpon and/or cobia, he said. The project is to be funded with a direct component grant obtained through the RESTORE Act, legislation passed in 2012 to reimburse five Gulf Coast states impacted by the Deepwater Horizon oil spill. (Source: NW Fla. Daily News 07/05/20)

NOAA: Revised gray snapper regs

NOAA Fisheries is requesting public comments on a proposed rule implementing regulations from Amendment 51 to the Fishery Management Plan (FMP) for the Reef Fish Resources of the Gulf of Mexico (Amendment 51). The proposed rule would reduce the annual catch limit for Gulf of Mexico gray snapper. This rule would not change any existing gray snapper bag limits or size limits. Amendment 51 established or revised overfished and overfishing thresholds. Overfishing is when too many fish are being caught and overfished. The proposed rule would reduce the annual catch limit from 2.42 million pounds whole weight (mp ww) to 2.24 mp ww for the 2020 fishing year, and 2.23 mp ww for 2021 and subsequent fishing years. The comment period is open now through August 5, 2020. (Source: NOAA Fisheries 07/06/20) https://content.govdelivery.com/accounts/USNOAAFISHERIES/bulletins/2944443

La. flood properties: Good/Bad news

There’s some good news in a new Flood Factor data base that indicates Louisiana's flood-prone properties are not as high as have been previously estimated (561K, but “only” 477,100). But with that positive, there’s lots of bad news from the non-profit First Street Foundation’s findings. Louisiana ranked No. 2 in the nation in terms of the proportion of properties with substantial flood risk (21.1%), behind West Virginia (24.4%), and ahead of Florida (20.5%). By 2050, a typical mortgage expiration, the number of properties considered at substantial risk of flooding will likely increase by 70% (to 809,800) statewide. That's by far the largest increase in flooding risk of any state. (Source: NOLA.com 07/05/20) https://www.nola.com/news/environment/article_2566fadc-ba5a-11ea-9291-b788cbd90904.html

Fla.-Mexico form maritime group

The new United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) went into effect on July1. Groups are exploring how to grow the maritime trade. USMCA builds on the previous NAFTA agreements. The World Trade Center-Miami participated in the first meeting of a new Florida/Mexico Working Group, formed between the Florida Ports Council (FPC) and the Mexican Coordinadora de Puertos. The two signed a letter of intent pledging to create a working group of 12 maritime commerce members from Mexico and Florida to grow maritime trade. “The establishment of this working group is a meaningful step towards significantly growing trade between Florida and Mexico,” said Alice Ancona, Senior VP/COO of WTC-Miami. Delegation members from Florida Ports Council, Enterprise Florida, and WTC-Miami met in Mexico City in July 2019 to promote the all-water trade route through Florida. Of Florida’s 15 deep-water seaports, eight sent representatives to Mexico, including the ports of Panama City and Pensacola. FPC coordinated with Jonathan Chait Auerbach, Consul General of Mexico in Miami, and Enterprise Florida’s Mexico City office to schedule meetings for the delegation with government officials and agencies, customs officials, and the Coordinadora de Puertos. (Source: Maritime Executive 07/02/20) https://maritime-executive.com/article/employing-the-usmca-to-build-trade-between-florida-and-mexico-s-ports

'May we think of freedom ...'

“May we think of freedom, not as the right to do as we please, but as an opportunity to do what is right.” - Rev. Peter Marshall, pastor, U.S. Senate Chaplain. 

* Additionally, the Air Force’s “Singing Sergeants” band collaborated with Lee Greenwood and Home Free for a special performance of one of America’s most iconic songs – just in time for the 4th of July. (Video source: Military.com 07/02/20) https://www.military.com/video/air-force-teams-lee-greenwood-patriotic-god-bless-usa-performance?ESRC=eb_200703.nl 

- Have a day filled with freedom and opportunity this 4th of July.

CG medevacs distressed swimmers

NEW ORLEANS - The Coast Guard medevaced two swimmers in distress while swimming near East Pass in Destin, Fla., in the afternoon of July 2. Coast Guard Sector Mobile, Ala., received a report around 1 p.m. of two swimmers struggling to make it back to shore after their raft had been swept away. A Good Samaritan boater was able to retrieve the swimmers from the water before a CG Station Destin Response Boat/Crew arrived to recover the swimmers. One of the swimmers was unresponsive, but regained consciousness after the boatcrew administered CPR. The boatcrew took the swimmers back to CG Station Destin, where awaiting EMS transported them to Fort Walton Beach Hospital in fair condition. (Source: Coast Guard 07/02/20)

Stiles takes reins of NMCB 1

GULFPORT, Miss. - Cmdr. Robert D. “Bob" Stiles took the reins of Naval Mobile Construction Battalion (NMCB) 1 from Capt. Michael Meno in a July 1 video change of command. The Kansas State University graduate was commission an Ensign at Officer Candidate School in Pensacola, Fla., mid-2000. He completed a Master of Science in Civil Engineering with an emphasis on sustainable and resilient infrastructure from Clemson University in 2011. Among some of his previous assignments, Cmdr. Stiles deployed to Fallujah, Iraq, as an Individual Augmentee to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers before reporting to the Seabees of Naval Mobile Construction Battalion (NMCB) ONE THIRTY-THREE in Gulfport, Miss., where he served as the ALFA Company Commander, Detail Buehring Officer in Charge (Kuwait), Task Force Denali Officer in Charge (Iraq), and Training Officer. (Source: NMCB 1 07/01/20) https://www.facebook.com/124282507598400/photos/a.145831835443467/3698358866857395

Bulk carrier record load at Mobile

MOBILE, Ala. - The Alabama State Port Authority received another Newcastle Max bulk carrier, NSU VOYAGER, loading a record 135,484 short tons (122,909 metric tons) of export metallurgical grade coal at its McDuffie Coal Terminal, outside of downtown Mobile.  All of its cargo consisted of Alabama metallurgical grade coal bound for Asian markets. Rick Clark, deputy director/COO for the port, also noted the increase of Post-Panamax vessel to Mobile, in part due to ongoing infrastructure investments.  “We’re rapidly achieving our goal to deepen the channel to a 50-foot draft, and shippers are seeking ports where they can soon leverage capacity opportunities.”  The Army Corps of Engineers and the Port Authority recently signed the project agreement to let channel construction contracts by the end of the year. (Source: Alabama State Port Authority 06/30/20)

No Mississippi budget, depts shutter

This coming weekend is likely the biggest on the water in South Mississippi, but on July 1 – the start of a new fiscal year - the state Department of Marine Resources (DMR) is shut down while legislators at the Capital fight over funding. Without a designated appropriations bill, DMR cannot operate. Gov. Tate Reeves tweeted June 20: “The legislature is locked in a fight over the Dept of Marine Resources. No budget. I support Senate position! House leaders are dug in on earmarking favored projects with recovery funds - huge change. New fiscal year starts now. With no budget, DMR can’t operate. It has shut down.” The absolute worst scenario that could happen is there would be a boating accident today and no DMR or its assets available to respond to it, he surmised. (Source: Sun Herald 07/01/20) https://www.sunherald.com/article243935032.html#storylink=cpy