New AWO Award Recognizes Waterways Heroes

The American Waterways Operators announced the inaugural awardees of its brand-new Honor and Excellence in Rescue Operations (HERO) Award, to “document and recognize rescues undertaken by AWO member company employees that demonstrate selflessness, skill and bravery.” The AWO announced the awardees March 1 at its Operators Winter Safety Meeting in Houston, Texas.

Qualifying events for the award include rescuing commercial or recreational mariners; responding to a medical emergency onboard; recovering a person who has fallen overboard; responding to a person in distress while traveling to/from the boat; and “other selfless service actions that reflect the safety culture of the American tugboat, towboat and barge industry.”

The first American Waterways HERO awardees include six vessel crews employed by three different AWO member companies:

• the crew aboard mv. Ron Callegan, American Commercial Barge Line, for rescuing a crew member from a fall overboard near the Plaquemine, La., ferry;

• the crew aboard mv. Safety Explorer, American Commercial Barge Line, for rescuing a crew member who had fallen overboard from another vessel;

• the crew working for Great Lakes Dredge and Dock LLC who, while working on the Houston Ship Channel Project, rescued three civilians from the water after their boat caught fire;

• the crew aboard mv. Mary K. Cavarra, Ingram Barge Company, for rescuing a person in the water near the St. Paul City Front;

• the crew aboard mv. Michael J. Granger, Ingram Barge Company, for rescuing a distressed automobile driver who had entered the water near Paducah, Ky.; and

• the crew aboard mv. Midland, Ingram Barge Company, who responded to a health emergency on their vessel, rendering immediate care and supporting an airlift evacuation on the Illinois River.

“We are proud to recognize the inaugural recipients of the American Waterways HERO Award, and we congratulate them on this achievement,” AWO President and CEO Jennifer Carpenter said. “These crews exemplify the purpose of our launching this award: to recognize the heroism of the men and women of America’s tugboat, towboat and barge industry, whose actions prevent harm and save lives on the water every day. We look forward to highlighting such acts of professionalism and selflessness, and at the same time learning from those efforts to continue improving safety across our industry.”

Mary McCarthy, director of sustainability and corporate responsibility for Moran Towing Corporation and co-chair of the AWO Safety Leadership Advisory Panel Distracted Operations Subcommittee, said, “We always say that our mariners are the eyes and ears of the waterways, but sometimes they’re the hands as well–first on the scene to help someone in need. The mariners that conduct rescues on the water often do so behind the scenes and humbly refer to their life-saving actions as ‘just part of the job.’ We’re excited to bring those stories to the forefront to show our mariners’ valuable contributions to communities on the water and share learnings from them to help all of us improve as operators and responders.”