[Congressional Record Volume 152, Number 66 (Wednesday, May 24, 2006)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E958-E959]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                  PRAISE FOR U.S. COAST GUARD IN TEXAS

                                 ______
                                 

                             HON. RON PAUL

                                of texas

                    in the house of representatives

                        Wednesday, May 24, 2006

  Mr. PAUL. Mr. Speaker, I would like to place in the Record, the 
following report submitted by Anthony Marcos, Command Senior Chief, Air 
Station Houston, Texas in recognition of the men and women of the 
United States Coast Guard in Texas who performed with great courage and 
made 723 rescues under very adverse circumstances during hurricanes 
Katrina and Rita in 2005.

       On the morning of 29 August, two HH65B helicopters from Air 
     Station Houston arrived at Air Station New Orleans for post 
     Hurricane Katrina operations. The arrival of these crews 
     marked the beginning of an unprecedented period of search and 
     rescue operations, and aviation engineering and logistical 
     support by Air Station Houston.
       For nearly two weeks, Air Station Houston provided a 
     continuous complement of three HH65B's affording 
     uninterrupted support of Katrina's rescue/response 
     operations. This support culminated in more than 164 flight 
     hours, 106 sorties, and most importantly, 691 saved lives by 
     Air Station Houston-based aircraft and crews.
       Recognizing a critical need by rescue personnel for water, 
     energy drinks, MRE's and comfort items, Air Station Houston 
     collected and shipped over 170,000 pounds of donated items on 
     Coast Guard and DOD logistics flights for response personnel 
     and the victims of Katrina.
       Air Station Houston utilized valuable Coast Guard Auxiliary 
     and other volunteer personnel in a vital information 
     gathering effort by serving as a conduit between the Red 
     Cross and Search and Rescue controllers for the forwarding of 
     time-critical information on missing or evacuated Katrina 
     victims and refugees stranded or relocated

[[Page E959]]

     somewhere in the New Orleans area or out of state.
       In addition to its legacy area of responsibility (AOR) Air 
     Station Houston instituted a plan to relieve Air Station New 
     Orleans of its non-Katrina SAR responsibilities west of the 
     Mississippi River throughout the Katrina response effort, 
     thereby increasing Houston's AOR by more than 18,000 square 
     miles. With two aircraft and crews deployed to New Orleans, 
     Air Station Houston crews responded to a report on 6 
     September of a civilian helicopter missing 20 miles south of 
     Sabine, Texas. Although already engaged in nearly around-the-
     clock operations in New Orleans, Air Station Houston's 
     outstanding readiness posture permitted two unit helicopters, 
     manned by crews recently returned from Hurricane Katrina, to 
     be launched in a search for the 12 persons reported aboard 
     the overdue helicopter. All 12 persons were quickly located 
     and then successfully recovered during this multi-unit case 
     by the two Air Station Houston helicopters in a daring 
     nighttime offshore rescue.
       The possibility of a category five hurricane hitting the 
     Houston-Galveston metropolitan area set in motion a massive 
     response effort from the Coast Guard Area Commanders. Within 
     48 hours of Rita's early morning landfall on 24 September, 
     over 125 contingency aircrew personnel along with 15 
     additional Coast Guard aircraft arrived at Air Station 
     Houston to commence operations.
       During the Houston-based response operation for Hurricane 
     Rita, the Air Station coordinated over 61 missions and 123 
     sorties resulting in 205 mishap-free flight hours and the 
     saving of 32 lives in a one week period. During this time, 
     Air Station Houston also provided invaluable support to Gulf 
     Coast based cutters including CGC Cypress, which allowed them 
     to quickly fix the position of displaced waterway buoys, 
     enabling the reopening of vital waterways and the free-flow 
     of commerce in and out of the Gulf.

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