Weekly News Summary For September 26-October 2, 2005:
Finding shipyard workers who either evacuated or have not returned to work for other reasons continues to plague New Orleans area yards. An informal survey of shipyards found that most are operating with between 25 and 50 percent of their workforce.
While most sustained some wind damage to various structures, the drydocks and other shipyard equipment escaped with few ill effects. Power and phone service has been restored.
Elmwood Drydock & Repair in Belle Chasse, La. reports that of its 71 employees, all but one have been accounted for, but only 35 have shown up for work. "We moved all of our customers’ equipment out of harm’s way before the hurricane," said Druis Lirette, who is in charge of Elmwood Marine Services. "We have some big projects of our own that we are working on right now." Elmwood is a division of Memco Barge Line in St. Louis.
The company chartered the towboats Eastern and Western from American Boat Company to serve as quarters for displaced employees at its facility in Myrtle Grove, which was hit the hardest. "We’re currently housing and feeding about 30 of our people there now," Lirette said….
By the end of the month, most of the 230 or so barges that were blown ashore by Hurricane Katrina in the area of International Marine Terminals (IMT) on the Mississippi River below New Orleans will be back in service, according to two barge lines that had equipment there.
About 50 barges remained to be pulled back into the river as of September 22. Of those, Memco Barge Line had 14 and Ingram Barge Company had 12. Most of the others are reportedly owned by Teco Barge Line.
David Sehrt, senior vice president of Ingram, said the 9,000 hp. towboat Robert Kyle and 7,000 hp. F.R. Bigelow had pulled about 72 barges in the three weeks following Katrina. Most had only minimal damage and were returned to service. A few needed substantial repairs and a handful had sunk….
The Coast Guard announced last week that it is expanding its Regional Exam Center (REC) services in Memphis, Tenn., following the indefinite closure of the New Orleans REC because of Hurricane Katrina.
The New Orleans REC is the largest in the country, and regularly issues about 20 percent of all merchant mariners’ credentials nationwide.
Mariners serving on most commercial vessels are required to hold credentials that provide identification and attest to the mariners’ qualifications. Many mariners in the hurricane devastated area lost their credentials in the subsequent flooding. These mariners, as well as those seeking routine renewal of expiring credentials, need Coast Guard services before they can return to shipboard employment, the agency said.
Due to space limitations, a temporary facility will be opened that will be staffed by employees from REC New Orleans. The space has been identified, and office equipment and computers are already in place. Employees are being directed to report to their temporary location in Memphis and this secondary facility should be open for full service no later than September 30. Operating hours will be the same as those currently in place at REC Memphis….
The U.S. House of Representatives unanimously approved bipartisan legislation on September 15 that authorizes $8.7 billion for the U.S. Coast Guard for the next fiscal year, which begins October 1.
The bill includes $1.6 billion for the agency’s long-term capital assets replacement program—called the Deepwater Program—and includes several provisions to address issues raised by the impact of Hurricane Katrina.
H.R. 889, the Coast Guard and Maritime Transportation Act of 2005, was introduced in the House by: Reps. Don Young (R-Alaska), Transportation & Infrastructure Committee chairman; Jim Oberstar (D-Minn.), Transportation & Infrastructure Committee ranking member; Frank LoBiondo (R-N.J.), Coast Guard & Maritime Transportation Subcommittee chairman; and Bob Filner (D-Calif.,), Coast Guard & Maritime Transportation Subcommittee ranking member.
"We should all be proud of the excellent work the Coast Guard is doing in the Gulf Coast in response to the Hurricane Katrina disaster," said Young. "This bill provides the Coast Guard with the necessary resources and authorities to protect the safety and security of lives and property on U.S. waters….
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