Posted on 11/02/2001 1:13:48 PM PST by father_elijah
CHARLESTON, W.Va. –– Several area chemical plants have been warned to take extra precautions after a boat masquerading as a Coast Guard vessel was spotted on the Kanawha River.
"They should do whatever is necessary to protect the facility if the boat approaches at high speed," said Lt. Renee Kern, chief of port operations for the Coast Guard's Huntington office.
"We left the decision entirely up to them whether to move vessels in the way, or to shoot, or to use a crane, or whatever," Kern said.
Coast Guard officials warned the area's five largest chemical and energy plants on Oct. 5 that the boat had been spotted near Charleston. Kern didn't identify the plants.
Of the more than 30 chemicals that federal authorities say have the potential for mass destruction when they are in large containers, 28 are manufactured in West Virginia.
The phony Coast Guard boat was spotted at least four times on the Kanawha River from Oct. 5 to Oct. 20, moving at high speeds or "lurking around power plants and chemical facilities," Kern said.
A state trooper saw the boat on a trailer on Oct. 18 but did not know then the boat was suspicious.
In an Oct. 11 letter sent to 48 area chemical and energy plants, Coast Guard Lt. Cmdr. Steven Wischmann of Huntington described the rogue boat as a light gray 20-footer with "US COAST GUARD" written on the side and a bar of lights atop the cabin.
The boat had no Coast Guard number painted on its side and no Coast Guard flag.
A boat matching a similar description was seen in late September on the Ohio River near Cincinnati, said Lt. Cmdr. Paul Mehler, executive officer of the Coast Guard office in Louisville.
Officials at the Coast Guard's Atlantic Area command office in Portsmouth, Va., said a small number of sightings of phony Coast Guard vessels have been reported since Sept. 11. All reports other than the boat seen on the Kanawha and Ohio rivers proved to be unsubstantiated.
Kern declined to give an exact description of the boat's lone male occupant. She said he fit the description of a "Joe average American."
"We don't know if the boat meant to scope this area and then move on to the next, or if it was doing something else illegal," Kern said. "Maybe it was someone not taking their medicine who thought they would be doing the government a favor."
© Copyright 2001 The Associated Press
Neil Young, Powderfinger (For the rest of the song)
He did not actually mention FR (or this thread) specifically - I think that he read about it here.
If anyone else finds a thread that may be of interest to nationally syndicated talk show host Hugh Hewitt (or his listeners), they can ALSO just post a reply to "Hugh Hewitt," and THAT thread will be marked for retrieval, when the link to the Hugh Hewitt bump_list is clicked. (Now, THIS thread will be there, too, since I am posting this reply to: Hugh Hewitt.)
Check out the posts ALREADY marked for Hugh's attention at http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/fr/involved?group=81, and,
on threads marked on the OTHER interesting "bump_lists" on John Robinson's official "Free Republic Bump List Register."For more about Hugh, read HUGH HEWITT and Free Republic: How should we help him help us? [Who **IS** this guy?]
Still wating for Hugh's courageous stand on colonistas.
If he wanted to be tough on Davis and the Democrats for lack of leadership and letting California go to hell, there was never a better issue. Too bad Hugh's been an apologist for non-enforcement of immigration laws since he went on the air.
Still wating for Hugh's courageous stand on colonistas.
If he wanted to be tough on Davis and the Democrats for lack of leadership and letting California go to hell, there was never a better issue. Too bad Hugh's been an apologist for non-enforcement of immigration laws since he went on the air.
1. The Coast Guard are highly trained LEO/military professionals (think shoreline Navy) who are now under the direction of DOD. They are NOT a bunch bureaucratic clerks sitting on their rears. They work their tails off protecting our waterways and are stretched extremely thin nowadays. Instead of ragging on some very fine people, why don't you do some research and maybe help out?
How YOU Can Assist/Support Homeland Defense
Coast Guard Daily Factoids. And now under DOD they have military/security missions. Did you ever think why there's a big gun on the bow of their cutters?
Coast Guard Auxiliary. As of today, I am a proud member of the CGAUX: 11S-2-7...to be sworn in on Veteran's Day.
Thanks.
Further, many inland law enforces do not have the maritime law enforcement knowledge that would enable them to quickly recognize a fake USCG small craft. Thus, once more the importance of everyone keeping their eyes open becomes ever more important.
Stay well - stay safe - Stay armed - Yorktown
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.