The heat in the workspace is intense.  The noise is overwhelming, and the nose is assaulted by the smell of machinery, oil, old water, and exhaust. The days are long and the work is dirty, but a strong sense of camaraderie is evident among those who do it. This is the world of the Coast Guard machinery technician, one of the largest rates in the service.

With hands covered in oil, engineers work tirelessly on the ships and assets of the Coast Guard.

"In my job (working with the engines and machinery), as dirty and grimy as it is, it’s the part I like the best," said Petty Officer 2nd Class Eric Wiedenfeld, a machinery technician aboard the Coast Guard Cutter Tampa. "I like to turn a wrench. I like to get dirty. I like to put my blood, sweat, and tears into a job."

During basic training, recruits choose a direction for their career. Those interested in the more mechanical aspects of the Coast Guard may be assigned as non-rated firemen.

Newly graduated recruits are then sent to Coast Guard cutters, small boat units and shore stations.

At small boat stations the new firemen integrate with the qualified crew, primarily working with the machinery technicians, or MKs as they are called, cleaning filters, bilges, and the other mechanical tasks at their unit.

For example, Wiedenfeld started as a fireman at Coast Guard Station Umpqua River, a surf station in Winchester Bay, Ore.

"One of my duties was to maintain the dewatering pumps at the station. I was also in charge of all the maintenance for the air compressors and the emergency diesel generator behind the station."

Coast Guard dewatering pumps are packed into water tight barrels and taken along on Coast Guard assets. They are primarily used in emergency situations and are passed over to vessels that are flooding or taking on water.

The typical fireman’s duty at a small boat station includes being a qualified crewman for the unit’s small boats, a qualified watchstander in the communications room, and often a qualified boarding team member for any law enforcement activity.

Aboard a cutter, the firemen’s jobs are a little more defined then those at a small boat station. They start off by drawing or sketching schematics of the inner workings of the ship, familiarizing themselves with the machinery, then work primarily in the engine rooms to become qualified as an engineer of the watch.

"The watchstanding is the key," said Chief Warrant Officer Sean Martinez, engineer in charge of the main propulsion division aboard the Tampa. "The watchstanders monitor the different pressures and temperatures; they are the first line of defense if anything goes wrong."

After some time waiting for training aboard a cutter or a shore unit, a prospective machinery technician then heads to the Coast Guard’s MK training school, known as class "A" School, in Yorktown, Va. There they develop a foundation of skills needed for their career.

"It is basically 13 weeks of class," said Wiedenfeld. "Every week is a new subject that we learn about. Except ICE, the internal combustion engine, which is a two week course, where we tear apart a Detroit Diesel 6V92 TA Engine."

While at school, the students acquire a large knowledge base in all areas of machinery operation and maintenance, from the internal combustion engine to environmental support systems, hydraulics, basic electricity and hazardous material recovery and control.

The students are not only trained as technicians, but also as future managers and leaders in the Coast Guard, since machinery technicians who advance in their career will receive more responsibility. A petty officer third class can start by overseeing one or two of the lower ranked enlisted members, to later supervising an entire shop once they eventually make chief petty officer.

Engineers work to keep the cutter fleet and small-boats operational, in particular the 270-foot medium endurance cutters that are pushing three decades of service.

"All maintenance is hour based," said Martinez. "After a 20-60 day patrol, we have a laundry list of maintenance that needs to be done, so the captain has a reliable cutter for the crew to take out."

The newer Coast Guard cutters being inherited by the next generation of Coast Guard engineers is a welcome blessing according to Martinez.

"With the newer cutters, everything seems easier for the engineers to work on. Everything is easier to get to. From an engineering standpoint, it is a marked improvement."

While the cutter engineer’s domain is within the hull of the ship, some engineers opt for collateral duties, such as Wiedenfeld, the only qualified pursuit crew engineer aboard the Tampa. It is a task that often has him deployed with the cutter’s launchable pursuit craft, chasing down drug smugglers or performing alien migrant interception on the open ocean.

"Law enforcement is another side of the Coast Guard that I enjoy," said Wiedenfeld. "By using some of my previous qualifications from the small boat station, it helped jump start my position as a small boat engineer and boarding team member."

The Coast Guard machinery technician rate is a job that is both physically demanding and vital for the safe operation of the Coast Guard's assets. Without the engineer’s hard work, the units and cutters of the Coast Guard would grind to a halt.

"You can learn a lot as an engineer," said Wiedenfeld. "You have the option to go to any type of unit the Coast Guard has to offer. The educational limits of what you can excel to is nearly limitless as an engineer."

As our country’s bicentennial quickly approaches, cities around the United States and Canada are preparing for a two-year celebration of the pivotal events in our nation’s history. Baltimore is one of the cities that will be commemorating the significant battles that took place in and around its historic harbor during the War of 1812.

One hundred years following the historic 25-hour naval bombardment of Fort McHenry that took place on September 13, 1814, Baltimore had become a significant port of entry for immigrants entering the United States, second to Ellis Island in New York.  Baltimore’s importance as a port of entry evolved due to the close proximity of shipping traffic and railroad stations within the city. As the country grew, those same attributes made the port advantageous to cargo ships for importing and exporting goods to and from all over the world through Baltimore.

Mariners navigating the Patapsco River can do so a bit safer today thanks to the Coast Guard’s recently completed upgrades to the Fort McHenry Range, a critical aid to navigation light system for guiding shipping traffic into the Port of Baltimore. 

The Fort McHenry Range is a tandem of lights at different elevations that assist ships entering the port by aligning them one-over-the-other, reassuring the ship’s captain and pilots their vessel is in mid-channel and in safe water for their entrance to the city.

The lower of the two lights in the system is the front light; the higher is the rear light.  In the case of the Fort McHenry Range, the front light was originally constructed on the fort at a height of 41 feet in 1913, 99 years following the renowned nautical battle at the fort. The current structure was built in 1934, again at a height of 41 feet.

The rear light is located approximately one mile behind the front light and was originally built in 1934 at a height of 113 feet and then rebuilt in 1963 maintaining the height of 113 feet.  This light is also located on a historically significant site in the city - the location was once part of the property housing the Baltimore Immigration Station.

Both lights were originally outfitted with 24” RL-24 drum lanterns creating a highly focused beam of light down the center of the channel.  Each of the towers and lights were designed relative to Baltimore’s skyline lighting and waterway usage in the area during the 1960’s. Due to the increased usage and growth of the city over the last fifty years, the range lights needed to be reconstructed and modernized with updated equipment to meet the port’s needs for today and for years to come.

The Coast Guard temporarily switched off power to both lights to facilitate the upgrades in June 2011. The front light’s rehabilitation and optics update included two new RL-24 lanterns with 1,000-watt lamps in each lantern.  The rear tower was removed, and a new one was built to a height of 155 feet and updated with three new RL-24 lanterns outfitted with 1,000-watt lamps in each lantern. 

The Fort McHenry Range’s daytime characteristic of both the front and rear light are fixed white. The nighttime characteristics of the range were changed to a fixed red for the rear light and a fixed green for the front light. This project was completed in September 2011, and both lights were reenergized lighting the way for safer navigation of mariners entering the Port of Baltimore.

The increased lantern intensity of the range and the new height of the rear light will ensure better visibility to the waterway users and allow for safer transits of deep-draft vessels arriving in Baltimore. 

As mariners on the Patapsco River, and travelers on Interstate 695 cross over the Francis Scott Key Bridge, look north toward Baltimore the upgraded Fort McHenry Range can clearly be seen as both the front and rear-range lights line up over the center of the channel.  They’ll be looking at the current aids to navigation lights, but could be easily reminiscing about the significant moments in our nation’s rich history that took place in the very same harbor over the last 200 years.

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Petty Officer 1st Class James Corbisiero, a boatswain’s mate aboard Coast Guard Station Barnegat Light, N.J., was relaxing after work when his cell phone rang.

Unexpectedly, on the other line was Rear Adm. William “Dean” Lee, commander of the Coast Guard’s 5th District. He was calling to congratulate and thank the petty officer for his pride in service, calling him the functional equivalent to a top gun for the boat forces community.

Earlier in the day, in a ceremony lasting only minutes, Corbisiero achieved one of the highest honors for a Coast Guard boatswain’s mate, the designation of Coast Guard surfman. He stood proudly while the station's executive petty officer pinned the insignia, a life ring crossed with two oars, to his uniform. It was the culmination of years of training.

There are now six qualified surfmen standing the watch on the Long Beach Island, N.J., coast who all share the same goal, to save lives.

Within this goal, boatswain’s mates have a special tie to the Coast Guard’s life-saving heritage, and the surfman legacy at Station Barnegat Light lies deep in the roots of the Coast Guard’s family tree.

It was in the mid-1800s when Long Beach Island, N.J., became notorious for the dangers associated with crossing into Barnegat Bay, the most northern tip of Long Beach Island. The inlet and the bay’s rough water conditions were responsible for the wreckage of 122 vessels in only two years.

To try and minimize offshore causalities, the U.S. Life Saving Service was founded in 1872 and comprised of gallant men who would launch their boats from the beach into the surf and save people from troubled vessels; this is where life-savers became valued surfmen.

“I wanted to become a surfman to keep the tradition alive,” said Corbisiero. “I knew it would be hard work, but I was determined and being a surfman is a great honor.”

To hold this honor requires drudgery. Driving a boat and leading a crew into the surf is a hard job requiring patience, humility and a strong sense of personal leadership and followership skills, said Chief Petty Officer Paul Ashley, the station’s executive petty officer and surfman.

Like a well-kept secret, the responsibilities demanded of surfmen are mostly unknown.

“We do not bask in the glory rescue swimmers have rightfully earned over the years. There is no marketing and advertisement with flashy helicopters or motion pictures,” said Ashley. “Our work is simply more humble; people just do not know what we do.”

So what do they do? While others find shelter during stormy weather, a surfman and his crew are readying their life boat and donning their life jackets. When violent waves leave people stranded on disabled boats, a surfman and his crew are launching to rescue them.

Despite peril of the ocean’s waves, Ashley said he is never scared. He is always cautious with an intense gut intuition reminding him anything can happen at any time, in any condition.

“I'll be scared for myself the day that feeling subsides,” he said.

Though, it seems unlikely the feeling will subside. People who drive boats in heavy surf have a different mentality than most people do: their actions prove them to be selflessly brave.

Station Barnegat Light’s surfmen stand left to right: Chief Warrant Officer 3 Jay Greiner, Petty Officer 1st Class Mark DeBonis, Petty Officer 1st Class Jared Meloro, Petty Officer 1st Class James Corbisiero, Petty Officer 1st Class Patrick Brown and Chief Petty Officer Paul Ashley.

Bravery is not the only attribute required to become a surfman. Only the most qualified small boat drivers can work to earn the responsibility of being a surfman and of those only about 1 in 25 will achieve the honor. The job requires the 47-foot Motor Life Boat driver and his crew to get underway in the most treacherous weather and get though the breaking surf.

“It’s called wave avoidance,” said Corbisiero, “but really it is a lot of science. We have to anticipate how and when a wave will break, and know how we are going to get over it. My life revolves around the weather.”

When the weather is bad, surfmen have no choice but to be at their best. Barnegat Light faces significant challenges because of dramatic variability in the weather. For a unit to be recognized as a surf station the breaking surf must average waves higher than eight feet, for a minimum of 36 days a year.

“Some years we have 50 trainable days, others it may only be 15. Elsewhere, each of the Coast Guard surf stations has a different bar, with different environmental conditions. A unit’s challenge is to train, qualify and certify their prospective surfmen,” said Ashley.

There are 20 surf stations scattered within the Coast Guard’s nearly 200 small boat stations. Of the 20, only five are located on the country’s East Coast.  

Because of the scarcity of surfmen in the Coast Guard, there are about 160 surfman among the more than 42,000 active duty Coast Guardsmen, and the remote locations of the surf stations, the six surfmen at Station Barnegat Light are a rare commodity for the people who live and vacation in the area. Their bravery, leadership and commitment to service help ensure the well-being of everyone.

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The Virginia Aquarium Stranding Response Team recently released a 315-pound Loggerhead turtle, rescued with help from members of Coast Guard Station Cape Charles, Va.

The stranding team contacted Coast Guard Sector Hampton Roads watchstanders for assistance getting to the turtle named 25, aka Big Boy, who was found entangled in a crab pot line off the coast of Cape Charles, May 22.

“We usually work with the Coast Guard in the case of emergencies, especially when we get a report of a live animal that is entangled, and the Coast Guard can get out there quicker than we can,” said Christina Trapani, a stranding information specialist with the team.

The Coast Guard assists stranding teams across the country as part of a strategic plan called Ocean Steward. The plan was made to provide the country’s marine protected species the protection necessary to help their populations recover to healthy, sustainable levels.

“One of the ways that we can help marine protected species is to strengthen our relationship with the stranding teams throughout the country,” said Lt. Cmdr. Kevin Saunders, a living marine resources officer with the Coast Guard’s 5th District. “A lot of training that the Coast Guard does with stranding teams is actually on the job. We’ll typically get called up for assistance then we’ll coordinate with them.”

In order to reach a deeper understanding and to perform better responses, members from local stranding teams visit with Coast Guard members hold lectures and bring along tools common to protected species related missions, for demonstrations.

Three stranding team members visited Coast Guard Station Portsmouth, Va., Oct. 20, to train 60 members.

“A lot of today’s training was about policy and covering what the stranding team does, such as observations and initial response,” said Trapani. “I also covered some of what has happened in the past. Not just with us, but with other organizations that help entangled animals.”

“In Virginia there are mainly three types of assistance that we do,” said Saunders. “We will at times get reports of animals getting lost, entangled in some fishing gear or struck by a boat. We’ll go out and try to recover the animal, bring it to the stranding team and allow them the opportunity to rehabilitate it. Other times, we’ll bring the stranding team to the animal and all back to shore, as was the case with Big Boy.”

Veterinarians at the aquarium’s Marine Animal Care Center examined Big Boy and had to amputate his left front flipper because of his injuries. After nearly five months of rehabilitation and adapting to swimming without his flipper, veterinarians decided Big Boy was ready to return to his natural habitat.

“This was a success story,” said Saunders. “Unfortunately, there are times when we come across deceased animals.”

When that is the case, the stranding team’s training covers the benefits to responding to a report of a deceased animal.

“I gave the disentanglement part of the lecture,” said Susan Barco, a research coordinator for the Virginia Aquarium and Marine Science Center. “I also helped with the hands-on necropsy end of things – discussing how we take apart animals when they wash ashore, and we try to find out what killed them, how they lived, whether they had parasites, injuries or diseases.”

“These are still important to the overall mission of the Coast Guard in supporting the stranding team because the deceased animals tell a story of about how they died,” said Saunders. “A lot of times that story ends up resulting in federal regulations that will protect the species in the future.”

“It’s amazing as to how a little change in fishing gear can make a big change in the survivability of a particular species,” said Saunders. “We have seen this with sea turtles and the integration of turtle exclusion devices in shrimp trawlers. We got there by analyzing deceased turtles.”

Whether it’s responding to a report of a deceased animal or one in distress, the training and response done in partnership between the Coast Guard and stranding teams is essential to the protection of living marine resources.

“The Coast Guard is the ideal port partner to participate in any search and rescue activity, whether it’s an animal or a human that we are trying to rescue, we train on this, and we have really refined the way we do it over the years,” said Saunders. “In the sector command centers they have the ability to use technology and lay out search patterns that are really well defined. We know the capabilities of our people and our platforms, so we know how to best use these tools to help guide where we look in order to find these species when we get reports that they’re in distress.”

“We are happy to help the Coast Guard any time because the Coast Guard helps us. It’s a great relationship, and we’re happy to help,” said Barco.

“The goal for all this is to ensure that the species that we see today are able to survive for future generations,” said Saunders. “So that our kids can appreciate them the way we do now.”

NEW YORK, NY — Few events are as frightening and as demanding as an emergency afloat.

One of an owner/operator’s most immediate priorities is to broadcast a distress call seeking Coast Guard assistance. Under the stress of the moment, a voice call can be garbled, incomplete or wrong. When minutes count and lives are in danger, lack of information or poor data can delay the Coast Guard’s ability to rapidly reach a mariner in distress.

Fortunately, there is a tool available that can instantly broadcast the right information. This tool is Digital Selective Calling (DSC), similar to an electronic maritime pager, which is triggered by a simple button on marine radios accepted since June 1999. When the button is depressed for 3 seconds, and if the system has been properly programmed, an alert is automatically broadcast. But, just like any tool, DSC has to be used and cared for properly to be effective.

A recent incident here in New York illustrates what can go wrong:

*At 11:30 a.m. on Sept. 4, 2011, the Coast Guard Sector New York Command Center received a DSC alert via a communications tower at a remote location. A DSC alert is transmitted as a digital data stream.

*The only information contained in the alert was that which comprises a Maritime Mobile Service Identity (MMSI). Maritime Mobile Service Identities are nine-digit numbers that specifically identify vessels. (If a GPS is hooked into the DSC-equipped radio, precise location data will also be transmitted.)

*The command center developed a search area based on a probable location and in order to launch aviation units. Within the search area, a search pattern was also established for the Coast Guard helicopter that would be used in an initial search. Simultaneously, the command center researched the MMSI data to identify the registered owner, who was contacted. A short time later, the search was stood down.

Why? What did the Coast Guard learn that caused it to cease efforts before ever launching a search and rescue helicopter?

When the registered owner was contacted, he stated that he had sold the boat 4 years prior. After further research, the Coast Guard was able to contact the second owner. He had sold the boat a week before. Finally, the current owner was found. When questioned, the current owner admitted that in the course of changing the battery, cleaning and checking equipment, he had inadvertently triggered the DSC distress alert. He also admitted that he had little idea of what DSC was or how it worked.

The potential harm is fairly obvious.

When search and rescue aircraft are launched, it costs several thousand dollars per hour to operate these craft. On a bogus search, that is taxpayer money burned up for no good reason.

When Coast Guard aircraft and boats are fruitlessly engaged in a search triggered by a false alarm, they are not immediately available for a real emergency. People in imminent danger of death or injury and needing assistance right away may have to wait longer than they would if an unnecessary search was not underway.

An owner/operator who triggers an unnecessary search, even by accident, is liable to civil and criminal penalties that may include jail time, civil and criminal fines that can total thousands of dollars, and reimbursement of search costs, more thousands of dollars. A recent search in the Sandy Hook area cost the Coast Guard nearly $90,000.

However, the Coast Guard’s preference is not to punish but to educate.

Responsible owner need to know what to do and how to do it.

Step one comes when you purchase a boat. Buy a marine radio, equipped with DSC. Then you need to register your MMSI data. The web links below will guide you through that process. It doesn’t take long and it could be the difference between being found right away in case of an emergency at sea and not being found until it is too late:

BoatUS: http://www.boatus.com/mmsi/instruct.htm

Seatow: http://seatow.com/boating_safety/mmsi.asp

U.S. Power Squadrons: www.usps4mmsi.com

FCC Online Licensing System: https://wireless2.fcc.gov/UlsEntry/licManager/login.jsp

Remember, the last owner’s MMIS data leads to him, not to you, in case of emergency.

The second step is to understand DSC, your equipment and how to use it.

A Boater's Guide to VHF and GMDSS: http://goo.gl/oencz

Yachting and Boat World DSC - Digital Selective Calling: http://goo.gl/rXmxN

GMDSS for Recreational Vessels Using VHF Radio: http://goo.gl/q4mwv

To remind yourself, post these instructions near your radio:

*When testing on the exclusive DSC distress and safety calling frequency 2 187.5 kHz should be avoided as far as possible by using other methods.

*Test transmissions on VHF DSC calling channel 70 should be made to another VHF DSC radio by using a routine individual call to their Maritime Mobile Service Identity (MMSI).

*For VHF DSC radios equipped with the Test Call feature, test transmissions should be made to the US Coast Guard MMSI 003669999 to receive an automated VHF DSC test response. Individual calls to this address will not receive an automated response. For older radios not having a test call capability, testing can only be performed by using a routine individual call to their Maritime Mobile Service Identity (MMSI).

*Under no circumstances shall a DSC distress alert be sent to test your radio. It is a violation of the rules and can result in heavy fines.

*You will need to consult your owner's manual for the proper operation of your radio.

If you do accidentally trigger a distress alert with DSC, take the following steps:

(1) Reset the equipment immediately,

(2) Tune for radiotelephony on the associated distress and safety frequency in each band in which a false distress alert was transmitted, and

(3) Transmit a broadcast message on Channel 16 to “All Stations” giving the ship’s name, call sign, time the alert was transmitted and MMSI, and cancel the false alert on the distress and safety frequency in each band in which the false distress alert was transmitted.

One of the Coast Guard’s oldest and most honored missions is rescue of those in peril on the sea and from the sea. Every rescue is a race against time, a contest not just with the hostile elements but with a clock that counts down tick by potentially deadly tick.

Don’t make that contest tougher than it has to be.

Do your part to save your own life.

Give the Coast Guard the information it needs to find you as quickly as possible.

Learn how to use your equipment.

And, most of all, don’t trigger a false alarm; someone’s life may depend upon it.

Coast Guard maritime enforcement specialists are a cadre of professionals with knowledge and skills in law enforcement and security.  Members of this rating are assigned challenging duties including maritime law enforcement, anti-terrorism force protection, port security and safety.  Among the desirable traits of an ME is strong leadership skills and physical fitness.  For Coast Guard Petty Officer Michael Molnar, his wife Heather and their two children, Sullivan, four; and Dominic, one; those traits would be put to the test in the fight of his life.

Today Molnar slowly and purposefully shuffles around a room.  It’s hard to believe that six months ago he weighed a solid, muscular 202 pounds capable of working long hours while underway aboard the Portsmouth, Va., based Coast Guard Cutter Forward interdicting drugs off the coast of South America. 

During one such patrol in early 2011, the wheels were set in motion for “his ride” as he was diagnosed with, and continues to battle the lingering effects of Guillain-Barré [Gheen-yan Bah-ra´y] Syndrome nearly four and half months later.

Guillain-Barré Syndrome is an inflammatory disorder of the peripheral nerves outside the brain and spinal cord occurring when the body’s immune system attacks the nervous system.  The syndrome is characterized by rapid onset weakness and paralysis of the legs, arms, breathing muscles and face.  The syndrome may occur at any age, but is most common in people of both sexes between the ages of 30-50, and often follows a minor infection such as a lung or gastrointestinal infection.  Most of the time signs of the original infection have disappeared before Guillain-Barré symptoms begin. 

Guillain-Barré is a syndrome rather than a disease because doctors do not know who will get it and who will not as it only affects one to two people in every 100,000.  The syndrome has no boundaries even affecting the 1996 Heisman Trophy Winner and former NFL quarterback Danny Wuerffel who was diagnosed in June 2011. 

For Molnar it began in early 2011.

“I caught a nasty strain of bronchitis in South America, probably off one of the boats we were boarding or one of the people we came in contact with down there,” said Molnar.

He went to the Coast Guard clinic about the bronchitis symptoms but he wasn’t given antibiotics due to the possibility of antibiotic immunity.  Molnar continued to fight the bronchitis then one night everything began to change.

“The process begins with the antibodies going crazy and attacking everything; the myelin coating on your nerves, everything,” reminisced Molnar, “The antibodies think they are doing what they are supposed to but they are really attacking your nervous system and everything starts shutting down.”

“I woke up in the middle of the night with my hands and feet tingling,” said Molnar.  “I thought I had just slept in a bad position.”

That week while Molnar was at the range renewing his weapons qualifications the numbness in his hands and feet persisted.  He and his wife Heather went to the local emergency room that night.

“I was told I had bronchitis and pleueritis, and dismissed.  When I asked about the tingling and numbness, I was told that because I had been out of the country I needed to see an infectious disease specialist,” said Molnar.

The next morning the tingling and numbness continued causing him to take longer than usual to get his uniform on.

“I couldn’t even pull the zippers up on my boots,” Molnar recalled

Molnar went to work; where things got noticeably worse.

“A three-and-a-half pound shotgun felt like a 9,000 pound anchor, I couldn’t lift it off the table,” Molnar said.

He went to the Coast Guard clinic again.  After running some tests he was advised to drive to the ER at Portsmouth Naval Medical Center because they have a neurologist on call.  Then everything changed again.

“I was tripping and stumbling down the hall when my legs stopped working and I fell down,” Molnar said. “They called an ambulance to take me to the ER.”

At first the ER doctors didn’t think he was in immediate danger and started to discharge him, but then Molnar demonstrated that he couldn’t lift a chair.

The doctor tested his neurological function checking the strength in his arms and legs.  “I held my hands up and he pushed them back down with the light touch of a single finger.  I fought with every ounce of strength I could muster to keep my hands up.” Molnar said.

The ER doctor called the neurologist who conducted more tests on him.

Within five minutes of the neurologist seeing him, Molnar was being admitted to the hospital.  “He said, ‘you have Guillain-Barré,’” said Molnar.  “I asked what that was and as he was leaving the room he placed his hand on my shoulder and said, ‘you’re going to go for a ride.’”

THE JOURNEY BEGINS

For most patients diagnosed with GBS there is hospitalization to monitor the symptoms which in many cases requires the patient to be intubated and placed on artificial breathing support.  There is no cure for GBS so much of the treatment is to reduce the symptoms and speed up recovery.

One effective treatment is to block the antibodies attacking the nervous system through high-dose immunoglobulin therapy (IVIG).  In this treatment, immunoglobulin is added to the blood in large quantities to block the antibodies causing the inflammation.

Molnar started IVIG therapy the first night.  The therapy is an effort to recoat the nerves and protect what is left of the myelin sheath surrounding the nerves.

“It is ridiculously expensive; there are three bottles a day for five days, at a cost of $10,000 per bottle,” said Molnar.  “I received two rounds of that therapy.”

As the syndrome continued to attack his body Molnar went through several more stages beginning with the onset of ascending paralysis starting at the bottom and working its way up and in.

Within one week of his diagnosis, Molnar was unable to stand up and was non-weight bearing.  Within two weeks, he was placed in a medically induced coma, intubated through a tracheotomy and placed on a ventilator.

“I don’t remember a whole lot about that time, I would get flashes of faces as they would take me in and out of sedation,” Molnar said.

“The progression was extremely hard to watch, given his previous level of health and the new level GBS had reduced him to,” said Cmdr. Michael Stewart, commanding officer, Coast Guard Cutter Forward.  “Almost every member of the crew visited him while he was in the hospital, it was rare to walk into his room and find an open seat.”

Molnar started improving after three weeks of going in-and-out of sedation.  By mid-April he was able to come out of sedation more frequently and start a second round of IVIG.  Toward the end of April he was moved to a rehabilitation hospital where he remained on the ventilator until the end of May.  In early June his tracheotomy was removed.

IT’S A TOUGH PLACE TO BE

Throughout this process, Molnar kept asking himself some very real questions.

“Am I going to be stuck here; am I going to be normal again; am I going to ever come out of this bed; am I going to hug my wife, pick up my kids; be able to be a husband, be a dad?” Molnar said, “I wasn’t sure if I was ever going to be able to do all that again.”

He didn’t believe he was making any progress, so Heather plotted his milestones on graph paper and said, “This is where you were, and this is where you are now in terms of ventilator settings and ability to do things.”

“I wrote to my aunt who was a physical therapist and said, Michael sat today unassisted for two minutes and the response I got from her was ‘incredible, he’s sitting up already.’”

Sitting up for two minutes unassisted may seem like no big deal, but it was an amazing feat for someone who just spent two months in bed.

ON THE HOMEFRONT

While her husband made milestones albeit small in his recovery, Heather had to balance visits to Michael, work, caring for the boys and the household.

“I worked in the medical profession for a long time and knew about Guillain-Barré, but had never seen it from the rehabilitation side,” Heather said. “I knew that I had to be there for Michael every chance I could get.”

The balance would prove to be too much when her employer gave her a choice to be with her husband or be at work.

Heather was terminated and that was when family and community began rallying together, and started donating money to help them pay bills.

Molnar’s Coast Guard family was involved from the beginning, stepping up to raise money to help and support their respected shipmate.

“The Chief’s Mess and the Wardroom donated gas money, so Heather could make the daily drive to be with Michael,” said Cmdr. Stewart.

Donations weren’t limited to their current community, Molnar had been a fireman before joining the Coast Guard, and volunteered in a firehouse everywhere he’s been stationed.  

“Every firehouse I had been in from Maine, to Connecticut to Elizabeth City did something, from benefit breakfasts, and bingo nights to simply giving us money,” Molnar said.

The Molnars are forever grateful for everything people have done for them, even making road trips out of state as Michael’s condition allows appearing at some benefits and personally thanking those who continue to help.

RECOVERY

The recovery from Guillain-Barré can take years.  Most people survive and recover completely.  According to the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke about 30 percent of patients still have some weakness after three years.

During his stay at the rehabilitation hospital and within a few weeks from finally going home, Molnar suffered a setback.  He had kidney stones, gastritis and sepsis all at the same time.

This meant making another trip to Portsmouth Naval Medical Center. 

“I was back,” Molnar said, “Where I almost died.”

The five days Molnar spent in the ICU sent him down a path of depression, but at the same time strengthened his will to get out of the hospital and start making real progress toward recovery.

“When I got back to the rehab hospital I said, ‘this is it, I’m going to get out of here, I can’t stay here,’” Molnar recalled. “I got into the mindset that nothing good could come of me being there, the only place that would help was going home.”

Ten days later he was discharged from the rehab hospital and has been home for about one month.

“When he first came home from the rehabilitation hospital he relied on the roller-walker, he had difficulty getting dressed, and feeding himself,” said Heather. “Now he walks without a cane, and he helps get the kids dressed.  We’re slowly getting back to normal.”

As the Molnars adjust to this new normal, Michael views his life through a different lens.

“My life was going to work; going to the range; teaching; running up and down the ladders of the ship like a monkey; working out; playing and tussling with the kids; going to bed and doing it all again the next day.”

 “Now everything hurts; my legs; my knees; my back and I get up a little slower,” Molnar said, “But, he added with emphasis, I’m not in a hospital bed, I’m home.”

While Molnar admits that he misses being able to play with his two kids the way he used to, being home has been the best therapy.

“I play with the kids on the couch or the floor but no more tumbling, we play the Wii, which also is good therapy,” said Molnar. “The doctors said that playing Wii is probably one of the best therapies around.”

“My prognosis is good, it just takes time – if I can get back to 80-100 percent of where I was, I can return to duty, it may just take a year or more,” Molnar said.

THERAPY

Molnar goes to physical and occupational therapy three times a week focusing on improving his grip strength by using putty, exercise bands and other devices.  In addition, he works extensively on leg strength, because he spent so much time in bed.

“If you could have seen him when he first started coming in, you’d be even more amazed at where he is today,” said Jason Spruill, Molnar’s occupational therapist.

Molnar’s recovery is continuing with rehabilitation appointments and regular check-ups, but there is the constant knowledge that even with all the gains the possibility of a relapse is never far away.  Through all of the difficulties Molnar remains a committed family man drawing strength from his family and looks forward to returning to the Coast Guard job that he really enjoys.

“I have good days and bad days, lately it’s been more good than bad, I’ll be back,” Molnar said.

Click on a photo above to view more detailed caption information and download the photo.

A little more than a year ago, eight men were called to relinquish their civilian lives and set out to commence a mission they execute part time; full time.

These eight men took a solicitation from the Coast Guard to be part of Station Philadelphia as Title 10 reservists.

Title 10 is a selected reserve and certain individual ready reserve members; order to active duty other than during war or national emergency.

This order to active duty was to supplement active duty personnel at the station and help support their role in port security, escorts of high interest vessels, military out loads, president, vice president and first lady security operations as well as search and rescue, law enforcement and training, according to Petty Officer 1^stClass Alano Demurguiondo, a Title 10 reservist at Coast Guard Station Philadelphia.

While supporting these roles, the station’s active duty crew, during a high personnel turnover, was able to conduct qualifications and training to get them up to speed to complete a number of missions.

“When we were called to active duty, we started with military out loads and Port Waterways Coastal Security missions so the active duty crew could get their boats in good working order and become fully trained and certified in all aspects of the job as a level one unit,” said Chief Petty Officer Robert Mayer, a Title 10 reservist at Coast Guard Station Philadelphia.

A level one unit means Station Philadelphia and its crewmembers operate at the highest PWCS level in response to being located in a tier one port, one of the nation's top import and export ports for produce, petroleum and the Department of Defense. The ports of Philadelphia and Wilmington, Del., have a large amount of critical infrastructure such as multiple bridges, petroleum plants and a nuclear power plant.

As a level one unit the crews are trained as boat crewmen and coxswains, tactical boat crewmen and tactical coxswain as well as boarding officers and boarding team members.

“We have put forth a significant amount of work and training to get the station to that point,” said Mayer. “We bring years of reserve experience and qualifications that a new recruit from boot camp would not be able to bring to the table. It was good having the support of the active duty command as well. They gave us the reigns to do our missions. It’s a trusted relationship.”

The combined experience and knowledge they have brought to the table has helped the station complete two Ready For Operations drills, seeing the station is properly trained, qualified, certified and outfitted so the personnel assigned to the unit can execute all assigned Coast Guard missions safely and effectively, and one Standardization team visit, to ensure the goals of readiness and standardization, resulting in the station receiving the 2010 Sumner I. Kimball Readiness Award. This award is for the top performing units who demonstrate excellence in crew proficiency, boat and equipment conditions and overall operational readiness.

“We have helped improve overall test scores, underway evaluations  and training but have also given us, as reservists, opportunities we would not have been able to accomplish one weekend a month and two weeks a year,”  said Petty Officer 2^nd Class Matthew Cole, a Title 10 reservist at Coast Guard Station Philadelphia.

This opportunity for these men have resulted in all of them becoming fully qualified at the station, four advancements and one being selected as the Enlisted Reserve Person of the Year for Coast Guard Sector Delaware Bay in Philadelphia.

“Qualifications come easier while on Title 10,” said Petty Officer 3^rd Class Jim O’Malley, a Title 10 reservist at Coast Guard Station Philadelphia. “It was a good opportunity for us to quickly get qualifications, gain experience and bridge the gap between the reserve and active duty members.”

Also during their time at the station, these guys have logged approximately 130 escorts of high interest vessels, 247 patrols of the Delaware River and critical infrastructure, as well as special operations, resulting in approximately 5,451 underway hours. These statistics are high because the minimum requirement for underway hours is 40 hours per six month cycle, 10 of them being at night.

Some of these special operations consisted of being first responders to the 2010 Philadelphia duck boat accident, security zone operations at the Philadelphia Red Bull Flugtag, the Dave Matthews Band Caravan concert and Fourth of July fireworks. They escorted the Coast Guard Cutter Eagle while in port in Philadelphia, performed multi-agency security operations, military out loads, battleship New Jersey community service, Operation Dry Water and Operation Patriot Guard.

“This has been challenging,” said Chief Petty Officer Ian Bucs, a Title 10 reservist at Coast Guard Station Philadelphia. “We have definitely worked hard over these last 18 months. The whole station has worked hard.”

In additions to the mission and training, these reservists have become a part of the crew as a whole.

“We have gotten to know a great bunch of guys,” said Demurguiondo. “I am disappointed the job is coming to an end and we are all going our separate ways.”

The Title 10 team will be released from active duty Aug. 31. Most of them will be folding back into Station Philadelphia’s reserve component helping to raise the reserve capability, while a few will be taking orders to a small boat station in Virginia.

 “Our Title 10 personnel have been a God send,” said Chief Petty Officer Chad Lawler, the officer in charge of Coast Guard Station Philadelphia.  “Although they were activated to conduct military out loads, they took ownership of our PWCS mission, providing a bridge for the unit, allowing our active duty to certify as tactical boat coxswains and tactical boat crewmen. Before our Title 10 folks, we had only two fully certified tactical boat crews. Since the title 10 were able to conduct the PWCS mission, without active duty assistance, this provided the dedicated time to focus on building more tactical boat crews on the active duty side. We now have six fully certified tactical boat crews. Without the efforts of the Title 10, the unit would have been underwater and not able to fulfill our PWCS obligations. I can truly say, without our title 10 boys, Station Philadelphia would not be operating at the high level that it is today!”

A Coast Guard chief is sitting at his desk browsing the Internet for the latest news headlines to stay in touch with what is happening around him. As he scrolls down the page, a particularly interesting headline with something about people diving with sharks grabs his attention. Being an avid diver himself, he is drawn to the Army’s Web site.

The article goes on to explain how the Army hosted an event to allow wounded warriors from various military branches to dive in the Georgia Aquarium, with sharks, nonetheless.

“I saw people diving in the national aquarium, and my first thought was somewhat selfish,” said Chief Petty Officer Jeffrey Charlot, the ready-for-operations coordinator at Coast Guard Sector Baltimore. “I thought, ‘I want to do that, I want to dive.’ When I stepped back and looked at it, it was more important for me to share that with someone else, rather than doing it myself.”

Charlot’s interest led him to explore a similar opportunity between the wounded warriors at Walter Reed Army Medical Center and the National Aquarium in Baltimore. After some research, he found out that nothing of this nature has been done in his area.

“I thought, ‘well if they can do it, we can do it,’” said Charlot.

After making contact with both the National Aquarium in Baltimore and the Soldiers Undertaking Disabled Scuba agency, he found that they wanted to set up a similar experience for the wounded warriors for the past two years, but were unable to do so. “I took that as a challenge,” he said.

He was already very busy in his job preparing the Coast Guard stations for their ready-for-operations inspections which frequently kept him on the road traveling to units throughout Maryland and Washington, D.C. Regardless of the fact, he decided to take on the task and make the wounded warriors a priority project, which consumed much of his time during the day, evenings and weekends for the next three months.

“I started planning in January,” said Charlot. “A lot of this was done, either on the road or from home, just constant phone calls, answering questions from people who had concerns and people wondering, ‘what about this, can we do this?’ Every week was something different, just getting all the parts to fit and get everything together.”

“Since it had never been done before, I didn’t know how to build it and put it together,” he said. “It was a lot of trial and error, trying to network and collaborate with other agencies.

With such an overwhelming task at hand, Charlot needed the assistance from the partnering agencies. He called Chuck Eicholds, the dive safety officer at the aquarium, Jane Spencer from SUDS and Command Sgt. Maj. Rodolfo DelValle at Walter Reed, each with their respective and equally significant role in planning this project.

“The aquarium was very proactive and easy to work with,” said Charlot. “Without them, this wouldn’t have worked out at all. It was a matter of getting the right people, and we worked well putting this program together.”

During the planning phase, Charlot realized he didn’t want the event to end at the aquarium and sought a restaurant near Baltimore’s Inner Harbor to host a dinner for the wounded warriors and their families. He pitched his idea to various restaurants and found Dick’s Last Resort willing to step up to the plate.

“I told them it was going to be expensive,” said Charlot. “They said, ‘I don’t care, we’ll do it.’”

In an effort to help, Charlot went to the Sector Baltimore Chief’s Mess, the Chief Warrant Officer’s Association and the Chief Petty Officer’s Association. Together, they donated more than $500 that helped offset the cost of dinner and purchased the wounded warriors' aquarium dive certification cards.

By March, most of the planning was completed, but the agencies decided they would postpone the event to a weekend during the summer to get maximum participation. The timeframe was likely to better suit families and children in school, so they could share in the dive experience.

As word spread, more people volunteered to help during the event. Henderson, a wet suit manufacturer, contacted Charlot about the wounded warriors diving in the exhibits. “Henderson has a relationship with the aquarium and volunteered to donate silk-screened wet suits with the National Aquarium Baltimore logo, the SUDS logo and the Wounded Warrior logo,” said Charlot.

Once a few other minor details had been sorted out, the teams came to a consensus that they would hold the event June 11.  The next important step was to identify the wounded warriors that would get the opportunity to dive at the aquarium.

“Wounded warriors were selected on being a part of Walter Reed, currently in the physical rehabilitation program that were certified as PADI scuba divers through SUDS,” said Charlot. The eligible members were then able to volunteer to accept the opportunity to be a part of the first wounded warrior dive at the Baltimore aquarium.

Of the eight Army servicemembers, many participants were already certified and experienced divers, though for some, this was going to be their first dive since their certification. “Some set the bar really high, because they were in an exhibit with sharks, rays and sea turtles,” he said.

As the warriors stepped into the training room, smiles filled their faces as they anxiously awaited the opportunity to enter the water. After the safety brief, the participants suited up in their scuba gear and made their way to one of two exhibits, the Atlantic Coral Reef and Wings in the Water.

The wounded warriors were split into two groups of four, where they explored each exhibit for approximately 30 minutes. In the Wings in the Water exhibit, warriors swam with various sea animals such as a large sea turtle, sting rays and a zebra shark, just to name a few.

Switching to the Atlantic Coral Reef, members swam down nearly 20 feet amongst a colorful coral reef and watched as exotic fish, moray eels, nurse sharks and sand tiger sharks interacted in their habitat.

“To be able to dive in the aquarium, and put that in your dive log is amazing,” said Army Reserve Staff Sgt. Stephanie Mason, a wounded warrior at the event. “I grew up in Delaware and would come to this aquarium as a kid. Not many people can say they've had the chance to dive in the Baltimore aquarium.”

“It was a very special day, not just for the heroes, but for their children, their family members and for their parents,” said Charlot. “This is a day that they’re never going to forget, and I helped provide that. It feels wonderful.”

After the dive had commenced, everyone was directed to Dick’s Last Resort and treated to dinner to close out the event.

 “As long as I’m here, I’ll keep putting this together,” said Charlot. “I’d like to see this be a repeatable success.”

BALTIMORE – Captain Mark P. O’Malley, the commanding officer of Coast Guard Sector Baltimore, gives his remarks during a press conference held Sept. 21, 2010, shortly after U.S. District Judge J. Frederick Motz sentenced Irika Shipping S.A., to pay $4 million in penalties for deliberately discharging oil and waste into the ocean. The motor vessel Iorana, a Greek flagged cargo ship responsible for the crime, was inspected Jan. 8, 2010, by Coast Guard investigators after a whistleblower had told authorities that the ship had illegally discarded oil and waste into the ocean. U.S. Coast Guard photo by Petty Officer 3rd Class Robert Brazzell.

On April 22, 2011, during Earth Month, millions of environmentally conscious volunteers did their part in the celebration of Earth Day by taking a day off work to help clean up the environment. Earth Day is a day that is intended to inspire awareness and appreciation for the Earth's natural environment. While this first Earth Day was focused on the United States, it is now coordinated globally by the Earth Day Network and is celebrated in more than 175 countries every year.

 In the Maryland, Washington, D.C. and Virginia areas, there are a variety of Earth Day activities that includes cleaning up the Chesapeake Bay and its tributaries. The Chesapeake holds the title as the largest estuary in the United States, but it also holds the less desirable title of being one of the most polluted bodies of water. Fortunately, it will be receiving $750,000 for cleaning and restoration projects through a $4 million judgment against a ship serial polluter that was covering up the deliberate discharge of oil and plastics.

According to court documents, the investigation into the motor vessel Iorana was launched in January 2010 after a crew member passed a note to a Customs and Border Protection inspector upon the ship’s arrival in Baltimore alleging that the ship’s chief engineer had directed the dumping of waste oil overboard through a bypass hose that circumvented pollution prevention equipment required by law.  The whistleblower’s note stated: “We are asking help to any authorities concerned about this, because we must protect our environment and our marine lives.”

During a Coast Guard inspection on Jan. 8, 2010, the Coast Guard obtained photographs and video taken on the whistleblower crew member’s cell phone. It showed the use of a 103-foot long “magic hose” to bypass the ship’s oily water separator.  The illicit bypass system used to discharge oily waste, including sludge, was routed through the ship’s boiler blow down system where any trace of oil could be expected to be steam cleaned away.  The illegal discharges were concealed in a fraudulent oil record book, a required log in which all overboard discharges are to be recorded.

Irika Shipping, the  Iorana’s managing company, pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court in Baltimore to two counts of violating the Act to Prevent Pollution from Ships for failing to maintain an accurate oil record book and garbage record book; one count of obstruction of the Coast Guard’s inspection; three counts of concealing evidence; one count of making materially false statements; and one count of obstruction of justice.  The maximum penalty for each of these felony offenses is $500,000 or up to twice the gross gain or loss from the offense.

Of the $4,000,000 judgment, $750,000 of the criminal penalty will go to the congressionally established National Fish & Wildlife Foundation and be used for Chesapeake Bay projects. In Washington, $125,000 will go to environmental projects in and around the waters of Puget Sound and the Straits of Juan De Fuca. In Louisiana, $125,000 will go toward funding habitat conservation, protection, restoration and management projects to benefit fish and wildlife resources and habitats.

This prosecution was made possible through the combined efforts of the U.S. Coast Guard Sector Baltimore, the Coast Guard Investigative Service, Coast Guard 5th District Legal Office, Coast Guard Office of Maritime and International Law, Coast Guard Office of Investigations and Analysis, Environmental Protection Agency Criminal Investigations Division with assistance from the U.S. Customs and Border Protection.  The cases were prosecuted by Richard A. Udell, Senior Trial Attorney of the Environmental Crimes Section of the U.S. Department of Justice, P. Michael Cunningham, Assistant U.S. Attorney in Baltimore, James Oesterle, Assistant U.S. Attorney in Seattle, and Dorothy Manning Taylor, Assistant U.S. Attorney in New Orleans.  

To view the original press release from the U.S Department of Justice please click here.

In today’s world it is exceedingly difficult to become the first person to achieve a particular feat. Add trying to make that accomplishment in the oldest continuous seagoing service, in one of the oldest rates, and you have quite a phenomenal achievement.

Breaking down that barrier and creating history is exactly what happened on March 1, 2011 in a small ceremony held at the Ida Lewis Auditorium aboard Coast Guard Training Center Cape May, N.J., when Petty Officer 1^st Class Kristin Werner accepted her anchors and the title as, the first female chief gunner’s mate.

It’s a Coast Guard tradition to ask two people who you admire to remove your old rank and replace it with your new rank. Werner requested this honor be given to Senior Chief Petty Officer Crystal Sparks and Chief Petty Officer John Ruchser who pinned on her anchors, marking Werner’s huge personal accomplishment.

While the gunner’s mate rating was formally established in 1797, women have served in the rating for only the last 35 years. According to Master Chief Petty Officer Timothy Wallace, the Gunner’s Mate Rating Force Manager, there are currently 695 active duty gunner’s mates of which only 37 are females, or about 5% of the rate.

Deciding to become a gunner’s mate was an easy choice for Werner because she knew the rate would allow her to work on mechanical equipment and would give her the opportunity to share her knowledge with a wide variety of personnel through weapons safety training and range training.

“After A-school I wanted an assignment on a 378-foot, high-endurance cutter, because they have the majority of systems that a gunner’s mate can work on and it would give me the experience I needed in my rating,” said Werner.

Gunner’s mates are small weapons specialists that work with everything from pistols, rifles and machine guns to 76mm gun weapons systems. They are responsible for training personnel in the proper handling of weapons, ammunition and pyrotechnics.

“I never touched a weapon before I joined the Coast Guard,” said Werner as she laughed about being from the suburbs. “As a gunner’s mate it’s not all about shooting, that’s only a small part of the job, it’s about maintaining equipment, teaching, trouble shooting and accounting for parts and ammunition.

In the 15 years Werner has served in the Coast Guard she has spent seven years underway.

“Being underway is one of the most unique jobs in the world,” said Werner. “I’ve been able to sail around the world with 120 plus of my closest friends and get paid.”

According to Werner unless you’ve done time aboard a cutter it’s hard to understand what it means or  entails to spend months at sea with a diverse group of people all sharing the same core values and understanding the role they play at their unit and in the Coast Guard.

“It’s like being in an exclusive fraternity,” said Werner. “When you’re out in the middle of the ocean, you only have each other to rely on. When you pull into foreign ports, you have your shipmates to explore with and the opportunity to experience new things and build new memories, it’s priceless.”

Originally from Seattle, Werner graduated from Coast Guard Recruit Training in December 1995 with Whiskey 147 and is currently serving as a company commander. She graduated company commander school in September 2010 and is currently training her third company, Sierra 184.

“I made the decision to be a company commander when I was here in 1999 attending recruiter school,” said Werner. “We were allowed to shadow a company and I knew that being a company commander would be something I would accomplish in my career.” 

Training Center Cape May is where all enlisted Coast Guard members begin their career and take their first small step towards their futures.

“It is very fitting that this ‘first’ was achieved here at the training center where so many careers have begun,” said Captain William G. Kelly, commanding officer. “The young people that go through here have dreams of graduating from basic training and achieving the highest ranks they can. Today, they have seen a historic first and now they know that whatever they put their minds to can be accomplished.”

“I am extremely honored to be accepting the title of first female gunner’s mate chief petty officer,” said Werner. “It’s a humbling experience to be standing in front of my company getting my anchors. I know that the shipmate’s in my rate work hard to advance and I feel that I was just fortunate to place high on the advancement list this year. I hope one day soon there will be no more female firsts.”