Interdiction - Part 2

Recently a very reasonable question came-up in a discussion within a private Face Book group.

Does the Coast Guard have the authority to fire on a vessel suspected of running drugs or engaged in some other suspected illegal activity?

The short answer is yes.  Unremarkably, the rules of engagement are similar to those of any law enforcement organization.

The US Coast Guard may fire disabling shots at a suspected drug smuggling vessel as long as specific legal rules and operational conditions are met. 

Under the Coast Guard Use of Force Policy found in the Coast Guard Maritime Law Enforcement Manual (MLEM) paraphrased as follows:

1.  Legal authority (jurisdiction).  This requires probable cause or reasonable suspicion of drug smuggling.  Including, does the USCG have the legal authority to stop the vessel - is it in US waters, is it a US vessel, or has a foreign nation given permission?

2.  Issuance of warnings. This requires the use of visual and verbal signals.  The use of lights, sirens, radio calls, and hand signals. And frequently warning shots first; typically with an M240 or .50-caliber across the bow.

3. When the suspect vessel refuses to stop.  If the crew ignores repeated commands to stop - called a “non-compliant vessel” - disabling fire is permitted as the next step before any higher level of force.

4.  Only to disable the vessel, not harm the crew.  These are called “Disabling Fire” or “Engine Disabling Rounds.”  Shots are directed at the engines, not people.  Only trained Precision Marksmen/Surface (PMS) or helicopter gunners can do this.  These shots must be reasonably expected to stop the vessel safely.

5.  When the Coast Guard cannot fire.  They may not fire simply because the boat is suspected of drug running.  If it would create an unreasonable risk to innocent people.  Without proper maritime law enforcement authority.  Without exhausting lesser means (warnings, maneuvering, etc.)

6.  Helicopter Armed Interdiction.  The MH-65 “Hitron” helicopters are utilized for this.  Using a self-stabilizing weapon they fire warning shots.  Then fire precision .50-caliber disabling rounds into outboard motors.  This is a standard technique against go-fast boats.

7.  Deadly force.  Deadly force (shooting at people) is allowed only when the suspected crew poses an imminent threat of death or serious bodily harm.  It is unlawful if solely because of drug smuggling or fleeing.

Through Operation Pacific Viper, the Coast Guard has accelerated operations against cartels across the Eastern Pacific.   

During this surge, the crew of USCG Cutter Munro only last week delivered a massive win: 20,000+ pounds of cocaine seized in a single interdiction, the largest Coast Guard drug bust at sea in more than 18 years. 

USCG crews are bringing every capability to the fight, protecting the Homeland, and combating the flow of deadly drugs long before they can impact American communities.

Interdiction - Part 1

photo USCG

As long as we're on the subject of drug interdiction I did some fact checking. 

Under the Department of Homeland Security, the US Coast Guard is the primary agency for US maritime law enforcement. They are our country's law enforcement on the high seas.  This includes drug interdiction, migrant interdiction, fisheries enforcement and more.  Like the US Navy, that agency has sophisticated intel and technology to identify and halt drug runners. 

The US Navy, under the Department of Defense, focuses on warfare, defense and maintaining freedom of the seas with its role shifting to law enforcement only during wartime or specific security crises - adhering to military rather than civilian law. 

Typically, armed USCG teams will halt a boat that there is probable cause to suspect is carrying illegal drugs. They will sequester its crew while a search is done.

If no contraband is found, the Coast Guard vacates the boat and sends the captain and crew on their merry way.

If drugs are found, the crew is arrested and the boat taken in tow by the Coast Guard. The suspects are turned over to federal authorities where they will be arraigned, assigned attorneys, and tried on drug charges. That is called due process and is no different than how any law enforcement agency or department deals with the sale or distribution of illegal drugs in our communities.

Capital punishment is not an option because under our federal law, drug delivery – even massive amounts – is punishable by prison terms, not death. At no time does the Coast Guard act as judge, jury, and executioner.

And they are very good at what they do.  In November the US Coast Guard announced it seized nearly 510,000 pounds of cocaine in the Eastern Pacific Ocean and Caribbean during fiscal year 2025 (FY25), the largest amount in the Service's history. On average, the Coast Guard seizes 167,000 pounds of cocaine annually. 

Halloween

Anyone know if and when the Ghost Ship will make her appearance?

Hard to know with the shut down and all…

Local Maritime History

A couple of months ago we were attending the soft opening of the historic granary on the west side (old town of Sawyer) of Sturgeon Bay.  Looking to stretch our legs I suggested to my bother-in-law that we walk over to where the tugs are moored between the Michigan and Oregon Street bridges.  I pointed-out a harbor tug, the Jimmy L, tied-up in its berth and shared some maritime history that he was previously unaware-of.   

This large tug was built in 1939 by Defoe Shipbuilding as the WYTM-92 Naugatuck for the U.S. Coast Guard.

USCGC Naugatuck (WYT-92)

The Naugatuck spent 40 years with the Coast Guard as an ice-breaking harbor tug and was decommissioned in 1979. The following year, she was acquired by the Calumet Marine Towing Company and renamed Timmy B. 

In 1994, the Timmy B. was purchased by Selvick Marine Towing and renamed Jimmy L. Selvick Marine Towing became Sarter Marine Towing in 2019.  She is currently chartered to Great Lakes Towing.

On this day we recognize the 49th anniversary of the sinking of the Edmund Fitzgerald.  This boat was the first USCG Cutter on the scene the day following the wreck of the Mighty Fitz. 

 

Who knew?

 

Eighty-five years of continuous service is an impressive accomplishment.

 

Sure is a wealth of maritime history here in Sturgeon Bay and northeast Wisconsin 

Small Maritime World

Today marks the 48th anniversary of the most famous shipwreck to occur on Lake Superior.

 

Of the 29 sailors lost to the sinking of the Edmund Fitzgerald two were natives of Sturgeon Bay. And the connection to Great Lakes maritime shipping history goes a bit deeper yet.

 

The USCG tug Naugatuck was the first Coast Guard vessel to respond on the scene of the missing freighter. The crew recovered life rings, jackets, life boat oars and other debris over three days on the scene.

 

 

The Naugatuck is still working on the Great Lakes now as the Jimmy L of Sarter Marine Towing in Sturgeon Bay.

 

 

When she is not at work you can find her berthed along the west waterfront adjacent to the Oregon Street bridge.

 

Small maritime world.

 

Last Boat of the Line

The 41-foot United Coast Guard Boat Large (UTB) has been one of the most successful boats in Coast Guard history.  

Constructed of a welded aluminum hull and molded fiberglass superstructure this vessel was powered by twin Cummins diesel engines with conventional shafts and propellers. Over the course of 41 years this was the general workhorse for the Coast Guard. A three person crew performed law enforcement, search and rescue and firefighting duties.  

In all, 207 UTBs were built at the Coast Guard Yard in Curtis Bay, Maryland, from 1973 to 1978. They have been credited with saving thousands of lives and millions of dollars in property.  Cost new (1979): $235,000. 

The last operational United States Coast Guard UTB is on permanent display in front of the Door County Maritime Museum in Sturgeon Bay, WI. The exterior is accessible to visitors and the interior for special events.  

CG-41410 went into service on July 1, 1977 at Station Milwaukee and served at a number of Lake Michigan stations in the succeeding 37 years. That included twice being stationed at the Sturgeon Bay Canal Station from April 26, 2002 until August 15, 2003 and again from June 12, 2007 until August 6, 2007. It was last stationed in Muskegon, Michigan. 

In keeping with standard USCG practice - boats of this size are numbered and not named. The hull number begins with the length followed by a sequential number. If you look closely the hull numbers on this vessel are colored gold. This signifies that it is the very last boat of it's class in service. 

Beginning in 2008 the aging UTB fleet was gradually retired and replaced with the 45 foot USCG Response Boat – Medium (RB-M). Half of the fleet is built here in northeast Wisconsin by Fincantieri Marinette Marine. Cost new: $2.4 million. 

Plenty of rich maritime history around these parts.

 

 

Jimmy L

Recently I was walking along the dockyard while attending the Door County Maritime Museum Classic and Wooden Boat Festival and a volunteer docent from the Maritime Museum commented-on my t-shirt.  Seems he was originally from Muscle Shoals Alabama  and we engaged in small talk about all of the music artists that found their way thru Fame Studios and the role that the session musicians - The Swampers - played in their recording success.   As we prepared to continue on our separate way he pointed to  this harbor tug tied-up in its berth and shared some maritime history that I was previously unaware-of.   

This large tug was built in 1939 by Defoe Shipbuilding as the WYTM-92 Naugatuck for the U.S. Coast Guard.

USCGC Naugatuck (WYT-92)

The Naugatuck spent 40 years with the Coast Guard as an ice-breaking harbor tug and was decommissioned in 1979. The following year, she was acquired by the Calumet Marine Towing Company and renamed Timmy B. 

In 1994, the Timmy B. was purchased by Selvick Marine Towing and renamed Jimmy L. Selvick Marine Towing became Sarter Marine Towing in 2019. 

This boat was the first USCG Cutter on the scene the day following the wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald. Who knew?

 

Eighty-two years of continuous service is an impressive accomplishment.

 

Sure is a wealth of maritime history here in Sturgeon Bay and northeast Wisconsin 

Ship Tour

USCGC MOBILE BAY (WTGB-103)

The 140-foot Bay class Cutters are state of that art icebreakers used primarily for domestic ice breaking duties. They are named after American Bays and nine of them are presently in service stationed mainly in the northeast United States and the Great Lakes. 

Bridge

Fantail

Propulsion is by means of two Fairbanks Morse diesel engines with Westinghouse DC generators and one Westinghouse DC motor. This diesel-electric set-up can power the ship through fresh water ice up to 20 inches thick and break ice up to 3 feet thick by means of ramming. It can also ram thru pressure ridges of up to eight feet in thickness. WTGBs use a low pressure air hull lubrication or bubbler system that forces air and water between the hull and ice. This system improves ice-breaking capabilities by reducing resistance against the hull thereby decreasing horsepower requirements. 

Helmsman's Station on the Bridge

Collision, Chemical and General Alarms

Crewed by 27 officers and enlisted personnel the Mobile Bay conducts ice-breaking duties beginning in December through April in the northern Great Lakes. Its Area Of Responsibility (AOR) includes Green Bay, the Straits of Mackinac, and the St. Mary's River. The ship travels as far south as Milwaukee and Chicago in the course of its duties.

The Cutters Mobile Bay and the Bristol Bay are accompanied seasonally with a 120 foot barge for purposes of maintenance of Aids To Navigation (buoys) in the shipping channels. Additional missions include Maritime Law Enforcement, Search and Rescue, Environmental Pollution Response, and Homeland Security. 

Buoy Tender Barge

Aids to Navigation

There is an enormous wealth of maritime history in Sturgeon Bay and northeast Wisconsin.

*Impress your friends with this maritime trivia tidbit:  The homeport of USCGC Sturgeon Bay (WTGB-109) is Bayonne, NJ.

 

Ice Drinkers Rescued

In further news from around here - last week four guys from Illinois had to be fetched from the ice near the town of Gardner after a crevasse in the ice formed stranding them on the bay.

The Coast Guard, Sheriff's department, Brussels-Union-Gardner and Sturgeon Bay fire departments responded to the call for help.

Nobody was hurt.  

Details - including pictures - here.

Score One for the Good Guys

Last week more than 26 tons of cocaine was brought ashore at Fort Lauderdale.  This represents the results of twenty seven separate drug interdictions by the US Coast Guard and Royal Canadian Navy in the eastern pacific.

Just in case you've ever wondered what $715 million dollars worth (wholesale) of cocaine looks like...

click on image to enlarge

USCGC Biscayne Bay

This is the US Coast Guard Cutter Biscayne Bay (WTGB-104) - leading the way for the sailing vessels during the Tall Ships Festival last week.

click on the cutter to enlarge

The ship in the photo is a Great Lakes workhorse.

A Bay-class Cutter - it is a 140 feet in length and equipped with twin Fairbanks-Morse diesel engines. These vessels are named after American Bays and are stationed mainly in the Northeast United States and Great Lakes. These are multi-mission craft tasked with maintaining navigational aides - buoys - search and rescue, law enforcement as well as keeping the shipping lanes open in winter.  They are ice-breaking tugs.  Equipped with a low-pressure-air hull lubrication or bubbler system that forces air and water between the hull and the ice the resulting reduction in resistance from the bubbler improves the ice busting capabilities of these boats.

Stationed in Saint Ignace, Michigan the Biscayne Bay is charged with keeping the shipping lanes open in the Straits of Mackinac and the St. Marys River. She ranges from the St. Clair/Detroit River system, Green Bay, Duluth, Minnesota, and all the way to Thunder Bay, Ontario. 

Tidbit:  Coast Guard ice breakers traditionally have red hulls.  White-hulled vessels perform maritime law enforcement and other safety-at-sea missions.  A black hull signifies a multi-mission vessel - or a multi-tasking working boat.

Cool video clip of the cutter in action...