[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 163 (2017), Part 8]
[House]
[Pages 11144-11145]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




   HONORING THE 106TH RESCUE WING OF THE NEW YORK AIR NATIONAL GUARD

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair recognizes the gentleman from New 
York (Mr. Zeldin) for 5 minutes.
  Mr. ZELDIN. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in honor of the 103rd Rescue 
Squadron, a unit of the 106th Rescue Wing of the New York Air National 
Guard.
  Commanded by Colonel Michael Bank, the 106th Rescue Wing is based out 
of Gabreski Airport in Westhampton Beach, located in my

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home district, and has a long and distinguished history of service.
  In October 1991, during the storm that was depicted in the major 
motion picture ``The Perfect Storm,'' an HH-60 and tanker from the 
106th Rescue Wing flew to an endangered sailboat about 250 miles south 
of its base.
  After survival gear was dropped onto the vessel, they began their 
return to base. However, braving incredibly severe weather conditions, 
the HH-60 was forced to ditch 60 miles south of base in the Atlantic 
Ocean. All but one member of the crew was rescued by the United States 
Coast Guard cutter Tamaroa.
  In addition, in 1998, the 106th Rescue Wing carried out the longest 
overwater rescue mission in an HH-60. Members of their wing were also 
on scene at Ground Zero during the 9/11 terror attacks.
  Then, most recently, this past April, the heroic members of this 
squadron saved several lives when an explosion occurred on a Slovenian 
cargo ship. These brave airmen took immediate action when called upon 
to offer desperately needed medical assistance.
  On April 24, the cargo ship Tamar was rocked by an explosion in the 
forward bulkhead, which resulted in the immediate death of one 
individual and severe burns for three other crew members, one who, 
sadly, perished prior to the team's arrival. 1,300 miles off the coast 
of Cape Cod at the time of the explosion and holding a crew of over 20 
men, the situation looked dire for the injured members of this crew.
  Boston Rescue Coordination Center was initially contacted for help, 
who reached out to two Canadian vessels in the area. However, these 
ships were 12 to 24 hours away, at the very least, and did not possess 
the necessary medical capability. It was then that the 106th Rescue 
Wing was called into immediate action to save those lives aboard the 
vessel.
  Less than 2 hours after the request was made by the Coast Guard, this 
seven-member crew, led by Major Sean Boughal, boarded a C-130 Hercules 
aircraft from the 102nd Rescue Squadron, also a part of the 106th 
Rescue Wing, to begin the search and rescue. Following a 5-hour flight 
and superb airmanship by the C-130 crew, the seven-man PJ team executed 
a complex night parachute insertion of equipment and personnel into the 
water and then made their way to the stricken vessel.
  After making it onboard, the 103rd Rescue Squadron PJ team provided 
advanced medical care for the next 2 days until a Portuguese rescue 
helicopter could hoist the team off and airlift the injured seamen to a 
higher level of medical care. If not for the brave actions of this 
rescue wing, there could very well have been a greater loss of life 
upon that vessel.
  Mr. Speaker, these pararescuemen risked life and limb to save these 
crew members and have more than earned our respect and admiration. 
Today I would like to honor Major Edward Boughal, Technical Sergeant 
Jordan St. Clair, Major Marty Viera, Senior Master Sergeant Erik Blom, 
Master Sergeant Jed Smith, Staff Sergeant Bryan Dalere, and Senior 
Airman Michael Hartman for their lifesaving efforts on April 24.

                              {time}  1045

  Not only today, but every day, men and women, like those in the 106th 
Rescue Wing, put themselves on the line to protect us, our families, 
and our communities. It is so important that we continue to give our 
support to our Nation's defenders and provide every needed resource for 
these heroes. All Americans should be very proud of the 106th Rescue 
Wing and their continued legacy of remarkably answering the call to 
duty.

                          ____________________