Diligence returning to Port City after 8-month repair job

Wilmington is about a month and a half away to getting its ship back.

The U.S.C.G.C. Diligence was placed back in the water June 2, after an eight-month dry dock overhaul at Curtis Bay, Md., according to the Coast Guard's Fifth District headquarters.

The Diligence left Wilmington on Oct. 14, 2009, as part of the Coast Guard's Mission Effectiveness Program, which is a plan to refurbish much of the fleet.

The gleaming white-and-orange, 210-foot ship that Wilmington has become accustomed to sailing in and out of port is not only going to gleam brighter with a new paint job when it returns Aug. 2, but it will be a more effective tool for the Coast Guard's missions.

Diligence's steel hull and decks were reinforced. Its two 55-foot long propeller shafts were realigned. And deck equipment for newer, more capable small boats were updated.

Although the ship was originally scheduled to return to Wilmington on May 29, several factors prolonged the ship's dry dock time including severe snowstorms that hit the Maryland area this past winter and discovery of extra work that needed to be done on the 46-year-old vessel.

The ship may have gotten some much-needed pampering, but the 76-member crew worked as hard as always.

Many used the downtime to take advantage of additional training in more than 50 different specialty schools, ranging from shipboard baking to tactical coxswain.

The crew also worked at more than 25 other Coast Guard stations and vessels. In January, the crew swapped places with the crew of the U.S.C.G.C. Venturous to do some fisheries law enforcement and border security operations in the Gulf of Mexico.

When the earthquake hit Haiti on Jan. 12, the ship was diverted to that area where the crew worked to secure that country's borders. Later, the ship received a call from an overdue fishing boat that was taking on water and had lost propulsion and steering. They stabilized the boat and attempted to fixed the mechanical problems.

When it returns, the Diligence will continue patrolling the east coast, the Caribbean Sea and the Gulf of Mexico, performing rescue missions, protecting the environment, enforcing fisheries laws, stopping illegal immigration, and slowing down the flow of illegal drugs entering the United States.

Full Article

Ken KeeganReal Estate Broker(910) 523-0903 mobileEmail Mewww.KenKeegan.com