by Bailey White
Staff Writer
At Tuesday’s meeting of the Jacksonville Chapter of the Federal Bar Association, two commanders from the United States Coast Guard spoke about the changes their organization has had to make since Sept. 11 and how their presence has grown in Jacksonville.
“Before Sept. 11 our primary responsibilities were search and rescue, regulatory work and navigation aid. Sept. 11 changed what we did for a living,” said Mark Wilbert, a commanding officer at Mayport.
Wilbert added, though, that new responsibilities went back to the roots of the organization.
“Port security was a founding mission of the Coast Guard,” he said.
Now homeland security and search and rescue are among the top Coast Guard concerns.
“We have an increased presence in the water and better awareness in Jacksonville,” said Wilbert.
New laws require vessels coming to the U.S. for their first arrival to notify the Coast Guard at least 96 hours in advance, and the Jacksonville Coast Guard has escorted all cruise ships leaving ports from its jurisdiction since Sept. 11.
Commander Bob Palatka of the Hitron-10 Unit said his unit is also feeling changes since the terrorist attacks.
“We [Hitron-10] were designed for counter drug work,” said Palatka, noting the unit is the only armed aviation unit of the Coast Guard in the nation. “Now, we have new tactics and doctrine and we’re supporting our country and responding to the threat.”