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Moran Lauded for Firefighting Assistance at Maryland Blaze The U.S. Navy has awarded letters of appreciation to two Moran tug captains and three crewmembers for their role in extinguishing an April 28th fire on a pier adjacent to the Navy Recreation Center in Solomons, Maryland. Captains Darren Kerney and Jack Lachman were honored, along with crewmembers Bradford T. Webster, Kenneth D. Gaskins, and Robert T. Hargrave. Capt. Reid Sprague of Chesapeake Energy Services (CES) was also honored, for his assistance onboard a Moran tug at the scene. The huge blaze had engulfed the entire pier, approximately 1,000 feet long, sending thick, billowing plumes of smoke high in the air. Eyewitnesses reported plumes visible from as far away as 15 miles. A U.S. Navy training support boat, the USNS Hugo, was moored at the pier and also caught fire, but the flames were contained to isolated areas on the vessel. No injuries were reported in connection with either blaze. It was Capt. Sprague, who is CES's general manager, who first relayed an emergency call for help from Maryland's Calvert County firefighting command to Moran personnel, at 18:52. CES oversees tug operations at Dominion Energy's Cove Point LNG terminal in the Chesapeake Bay, which is serviced by Moran tugs. The terminal is more than five miles up the coast from Solomons and was not threatened. The Moran tugboats James R. Moran and Kaye E. Moran responded. Both tugs are outfitted with FiFi-1 firefighting equipment, and both are based at Ship Point on Solomons Island, near the location of the fire. After Capt. Sprague's initial notification, the chain of communications grew to include Mark Vanty, Moran's vice president and general manager in charge of the tugs; Ned Moran, Moran's senior vice president in charge of harbor operations; the Calvert County incident commander (IC); a Navy contact; the U.S. Coast Guard; a Calvert security vessel; and one other command-and-control vessel at the scene. 
Left to Right Captain Andrew T. Macyko- C/O Bradford T. Webster Kenneth D. Gaskins Robert T. Hargrave Captain Darren D. Kerney Captain Reid Sprague Captain Aaron C. West (accepting award for Captain Jack J. Lachman) Captain Stephen A. Schmeiser - X/O Capt. Sprague had secured authorization from Mr. Vanty to respond to the emergency before calling Capt. Lachman of the James R. Moran, and Capt. Kerney, who skippers the Kaye E. Moran. Both men happened to be having dinner with crewmembers at a restaurant 15 miles from the fire. The group returned to their tugs, where Capt. Sprague joined them as an additional crewmember aboard the Kaye E. At the scene, Captains Lachman and Kerney received procedural instructions from Mr. Vanty and conducted safety briefings before receiving authorization from the Calvert IC to attack the fire. From a location just off the end of the pier, the James R. sprayed the structure's topside with a torrential soaking from her two water cannons. The Kaye E. took up a position nearer the shore and sprayed areas that were out of range of the James R.'s monitors. Both tugs received aiming guidance from the Calvert security vessel. The James R.'s crew also worked with hand-held fire hoses to extinguish fires and re-flashes under the pier. It took roughly two-and-a-half hours for the combined efforts of the tugs, Calvert County firefighters and other local departments to bring the blaze under control. The Hugo had been purposefully unmoored and set adrift in calm waters off the pier. When local firefighters brought the fire on the boat under control, the Kaye E. broke off and responded to a request to tow the Hugo to a safe anchorage nearby, near the Patuxent River Naval Air Station. Both fires were largely extinguished by 22:00. Local units worked through the night to keep small, residual fires underneath the pier from reigniting the blaze. Damage assessments and reports on the cause were not yet available at this writing. In the Navy's letters of appreciation, Commanding Officer Andrew T. Macyko of the Patuxent River Naval Air Station commended the mariners for going "above and beyond the call of duty", and for their "dedication, willingness, and tireless efforts". |
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