Volunteers with the US Coast Guard Auxiliary, New London Fire Department, St. Clair County Sheriff’s Department and Tow Boat USA work together during training exercises on Logan Martin Lake Sunday. Photo by Danny Moore

The 2019 Fleet Academy Multi-Agency SAR Event was held on Logan Martin Lake on Aug 10-11. This unique training combines local agencies U.S. Coast Guard Auxiliary, New London Fire Department, St. Clair County Sheriff’s Department, Tow Boat USA and U.S. Coast Guard active duty in the only event of its kind in the state.

Trent Richardson, who has been with the Coast Guard Auxiliary for five years, is the Chief of Staff for the 8th Coastal Region of the U.S. Coast Guard Auxiliary. The 8th Coastal includes the Florida Pan Handle, Western Georgia, Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana, Texas and New Mexico, It is the Chief of Staff’s responsibility to act as deputy to 8th Coastal Region’s Commodore and assist in running the day to day operations of the region. He has been in this position since January of 2019. Prior to that he was the Chief Qualification Examiner for the 8th Coastal.

He believes that the local agencies have a combined responsibility for the lake, and the Fleet Academy is a way to bring them together.

“The focus is to get a better understanding of each others’ capabilities and roles so that we can make the lake community safer,” Richardson said.

The training was divided in two parts, with classroom sessions on Saturday and water exercises on Sunday. Richardson separated 30 registered volunteers into smaller groups Sunday morning, then they hit the water for drills like man over board, search patterns, anchoring, docking and supporting, boat handling, tracking and turning, set and drift, and navigation.

“Sunday’s exercise made it possible for members of the New London Fire Department, St. Clair County Sherriff’s Department, Tow Boat US and the Coast Guard Auxiliary to work side by side on the water,” Richardson said. “This type of activity not only lends itself to familiarization with how each organization works but builds each organizations’ confidence in the others so that in the event of an incident on the lake requiring a joint response the interoperability of the four organizations is greatly increased.”

Richardson is stationed at the facility on Logan Martin Lake. “If there’s a problem, we’re expected to be the local resource.” He went on to say the Coast Guard Auxiliary provides a platform and service to other agencies in a time of need.

The Coast Guard Auxiliary is an all-volunteer program with a sharp focus on boating education. The Coast Guard Auxiliary is the Civilian Volunteer component of the US Coast Guard and has been in existence since 1939. The Auxiliary’s primary mission focus is Recreational Boating Safety.

The Mission is carried out in many ways: on the water via safety patrols and search and rescue, in the air via logistics missions, observation missions and search and rescue, in the classroom teaching boating safety, supporting the Coast Guard at Active Duty stations in many ways such as radio withstanding, working in galleys, pollution response, incident management and administratively.

“Of course all of this takes a level of commitment and training that varies with the mission that a person wants to participate in,” said Richardson. “After all you don’t join a Volunteer Fire Department or Emergency Medical Service and expect to jump on the truck or medic unit without first having the proper training.”

To join the Coast Guard Auxiliary one needs to be 17 years old and a citizen of the United States. For more information, visit www.cgaux.org/.

“There are areas in the Coast Guard for everybody,” Richardson said.