Marine Log - September 2008 - (Page 18)

COVERSTORY Special unit gets traffic rolling on the river O ne of the many missions that the Coast Guard performs is waterway security, which includes keeping commerce moving. When the motor vessel Tintamara and the tugboat Mel Oliver collided in the Mississippi River near New Orleans July 23 it halted traffic. With large economic effects on the line, the Coast Guard called in a special unit—the Maritime Transportation System Recovery Unit (MTSRU). An MTSRU is established for every incident that significantly disrupts the maritime transportation system. It was created under a requirement that the National Maritime Transportation Security Plan include a system to restore cargo flow following a national transportation security incident. Lessons learned following disruption of maritime transportation during Hurricane Katrina played a role in its formation. The mission of the MTSRU is not new for the Coast Guard, just the formal creation of a specialized unit. “We’ve done it for years,” said Cmdr. Wayne Clayborne, of the New Orleans MTSRU. “We do it. Let’s take that practice and institutionalize it.” “The MTSRU is brought in when there is more than three days of port closure,” said Clayborne. The MTSRU is made up of members of the Coast Guard, local government and industry leaders. The government and industry leaders are instrumental in providing barge, ship and facility information to the Coast Guard. “It’s a partnership with industry,” said Clayborne. “This is a place where all the information can come together.” The MTSRU has the job of informing Coast Guard decision makers and other stakeholders at all levels on the status of potential impacts on maritime transportation following disruption. Its members work to define new organizational elements to support recovery efforts and ensure recovery is a critical element of planning at all Coast Guard levels. MTSRU members also identify communication mechanisms and informational requirements to facilitate the recovery of waterway traffic flow. “It’s not just about re-opening the river—it’s about the entire infrastructure of the central, northern and southern parts of the United States staying alive,” said Matthew Hahne, of the New Orleans MTSRU. “If we can't continue to move those barges, we shut down the entire transportation infrastructure of the United States.” Hahne said one of the biggest problems they encountered was finding what the national impact items were. Once they knew what those critical components were, they were able to shuffle the vessels and barges to meet those impacts. SPECIAL UNIT continued on page 21 Coast Guard Lt. Caryn Margita coordinates vessel traffic movement at New Orleans MTSRU 18 MARINE LOG SEPTEMBER 2008 www.marinelog.com http://www.helkamabica.fi http://www.helkamabica.fi http://www.marinelog.com

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Marine Log - September 2008

Marine Log - September 2008 Editorial Second Thoughts Update Contents Inside Washington Slick Cleanup The Women of WISTA Keeping Ships at Sea Connected Shipbuilding Shakeup Newsmakers Tech News Contracts Events Website Directory ML Buyer's Guide ML Marketplace Letters Marine Salvage

Marine Log - September 2008

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