By Karen Robes Meeks After supporting Operation Deep Freeze in Antarctica, US Coast Guard Cutter Polar Star (WAGB 10) has left McMurdo Station and is on its way back to its Seattle, Wash., homeport. On its 23rd journey to Antarctica, the 399-foot, 13,000-ton cutter carved out ice to open a 23-mile channel to McMurdo Sound, allowing three logistics vessels to unload more than 19.5 million pounds of dry cargo and 7.6 million gallons of fuel. These supplies will keep National Science Foundation operations going until Polar Star returns in 2021, according to USCG. “I am immensely proud of all the hard work and dedication the men and women of the Polar Star demonstrate each and every day,” said Greg Stanclik, commanding officer of the Polar Star. “Maintaining and operating a 44-year-old ship in the…
By Karen Robes Meeks After 58 days at sea, the US Coast Guard Cutter Polar Star and its crew of 159 members made it to Antarctica to support Operation Deep Freeze. It represents the icebreaker’s 23rd journey to the region to support the National Science Foundation. The 399-foot, 13,000-ton icebreaker – which arrived at McMurdo Station on Jan. 22 – left its Seattle, Wash., homeport on Nov. 26 to carve a 23-mile channel through the ice to McMurdo Sound. This opening allowed more than 19.5 million pounds of dry cargo and 7.6 million gallons of fuel to be offloaded from three logistic vessels, according to the USCG. The three ships combined hold enough fuel and vital supplies to keep NSF operations going in the area throughout the year until Polar Star’s 2021…
NANA/Lynden Logistics, LLC recently celebrated the 20th anniversary of its bid to take over the onsite trucking services for Red Dog Mine near Kotzebue, Alaska. During that time, the 50 drivers and mechanics that make up the core of the team have moved more than “57 billion pounds of zinc and lead concentrates, 320 million gallons of fuel and 1 million tons of freight between the Red Dog Mine and port site 52 miles away,” according to the company. "When we took over in 1999, we inherited tractors and trailers from the prior contractor and immediately saw an opportunity to improve the equipment to a more stable, environmentally safe and productive design," said General Manager Mark Tatlow. "We switched from a 9-axle tractor trailer set with a dolly to an…
After three months at sea, the 420-foot US Coast Guard Cutter Healy recently came back to its Seattle home base. Crewmembers went to the Arctic to support Coast Guard operations and various National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and Office of Naval Research missions. "During our deployment, we successfully transited 14,000 nautical miles and spent 50 cumulative days above the Arctic Circle, reaching as far north as 81 degrees north latitude,” said Capt. MaryEllen Durley, Healy’s commanding officer. “As the Coast Guard's sole Arctic icebreaker, we forged new relationships, trained new Arctic sailors, and conducted high latitude research that will help forecast the impact of seasonal ice formation critical to maintaining the Arctic maritime domain.”
Cook Inlet Tug & Barge will expand operations on Alaska’s North Slope for the 2019 ice-free season, the independently managed Foss Maritime Company subsidiary announced Tuesday. For the next three months, three tugs acquisitions, as well as barges and shore equipment will run out of Prudhoe Bay, further expanding the companies’ Arctic operations and bolstering harbor towage, oil and gas support services, mining and construction support, and offshore marine transportation services, according to CITB and Foss. “It is great to see these vessels on the water and ready to work,” said CITB President Jeff Johnson. “These shallow-draft tugs and barges are ideally suited for work on the North Slope waterways and the Western Alaska markets.” The 64-foot long and 27-foot wide tugs – Sag Wind, Kuparuk Wind, and Kavik Wind – run on three…
Capt. Mary Ellen J. Durley is now the commanding officer of the US Coast Guard Cutter Healy, a medium icebreaker and the high-latitude research vessel that is deployed to the Arctic. In a ceremony at Coast Guard Base Seattle, Durley takes over for Capt. Greg B. Tlapa, who will be chief of response to the Coast Guard’s 9th District in Cleveland. Durley was previously with the Office of Navigation Systems at Coast Guard Headquarters, where she worked as a program manager responsible for aiding in navigation, vessel traffic services, navigation standards and marine planning within the US maritime transportation system, according to the Coast Guard. As the largest ship in the US Coast Guard, Healy is 420-feet long vessel with a displacement of more than 16,000 tons and a crew of 87.
