| Office of Public Affairs U.S. Coast Guard |
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| Feature Story |
Date: March 23, 2007 |
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Drills, an Important Part of Shipboard Life By Petty Officer Luke ClaytonHONOLULU -- Fire, fire, fire! That's what a visitor would hear all the way through the Coast Guard Cutter Jarvis, a 378-foot high endurance cutter, before everything becomes a blur of vigilant speed and precision. Each member of the crew of 167 Coast Guardsmen knows their precise job or role throughout the drill because of the watch quarter station bill. The watch quarter station bill designates each individual a specific role. From a hose team to a pump team, all individuals have a significant role. No role is insignificant.
Lights go dim and fans and machinery go silent as the crew prepares to "attack" a simulated fire in the engine room. With sweat rolling of his brow from being in a fire resistant suit, Fireman Jason A. Gore suited up for his position as lead nozzleman in this particular drill. The senior chief instructor said the drill is important in keeping the Jarvis ready for any catastrophe related to a fire.
"All drills are important, they might save your life. Even if you're not actually spraying water and foam on the fire, your role is still matters. It's a team related scenario," said Gore.
Soon after, the crewmembers explained that all positions have a very vital role. The Coast Guard has a very intricate and step-by-step plan to extinguish the fire problem with minimum risk to the crew. While members go through the drill, there are onboard instructors who teach the role players valuable lessons. In one situation, the fire hose couldn't reach around the corner to the spot where the simulated fire was burning so the instructor showed an age-old technique to the fire team and told them they could reflect the fire hose water off a wall onto the fire.
Though the relative amount of instructors to role players is small, instructors are very detailed. They showed each role player every possible scenario of how things could transform in an instant and how to take action in the approved manner. The crew mentioned after doing drills over and over again they don't even need to think about what they are doing, they just automatically do it.
All Coast Guard units practice an assortment of drills frequently. Fire, flooding, oil spill response, man overboard and rescue response are just a fraction of drills practiced. By being vigorous in these drills, the Coast Guard keeps its motto of Semper Paratus (always ready).
For pictures of the event contact Petty Officer Luke P. Clayton at (808) 541-2121 ###
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