World Photo by Jolene Guzman
A U.S. Coast Guard helicopter crew buzzes by USCG ORCAS Tuesday afternoon as the ship's crew pulls the ship up to its dock in Coos Bay. ORCAS and its crew spent two and a half months in Ketchikan, Alaska, for repairs on the 110-foot cutter.
World Photo by Jolene Guzman
A family awaits the docking of USCG Cutter ORCAS Tuesday afternoon at the Coast Guard dock in Coos Bay.
World Photo by Jolene Guzman
Community members hoist U.S. flags overhead Tuesday afternoon as USCG Cutter ORCAS docks in Coos Bay.
World Photo by Jolene Guzman
A family member greets a member of the USCG ORCAS crew Tuesday afternoon after the ship completed a stormy six-day journey home from Ketchikan,
Alaska.
World Photo by Jolene Guzman
USCG Cutter ORCAS sits moored at the U.S. Coast Guard dock in Coos Bay Tuesday afternoon. The crew and vessel returned Tuesday from a two-and-a-half month maintenance mission in Ketchikan, Alaska.
COOS BAY - The U.S. Coast Guard Cutter ORCAS crew had a bumpy ride home from Ketchikan, Alaska.
"It's a big trip for us," said Lt. Jimmy Terrell, the boat's captain. "We really didn't catch a break in the weather."
The ORCAS and crew members sailed for home Thursday after a two-and-half-month dry dock overhaul of the 110-foot cutter. They arrived in Coos Bay on Tuesday to a hero's welcome.
But to get here, they fought rough seas.
"With the distance and time away from home, these guys were itching to get home," Terrell said.
The crew couldn't rush too much in the face of two storms, stirring up big seas as they made their way back.
"You can only go so fast in 20-foot seas - without breaking the ship," Terrell said.
The cutter returned gleaming in the sunshine, despite the battering it took on the way down. Family members and representatives of Point Man Ministries were at the ORCAS dock with flowers, balloons and flags to greet the returning coasties.
ORCAS and its crew left Coos Bay on Dec. 27 for Alaska to complete work that required the boat be out of water, including replacing the propellers, engines and painting the superstructure. The overhaul cost $500,000. ORCAS has been stationed in Coos Bay since 1989. It is a multiple-mission vessel, focusing on monitoring fisheries, search and rescue and homeland security.
Crew members spent their time in Alaska working on the ship and painting.
"It was a regular work day for us," Terrell said.
Crew members with families were allowed to come back home once on leave during the ship's overhaul. Trista Dinjian said her husband, Seaman Jesse Dinjian, came home in February to see her and their two daughters. Other than that week, this was the longest the young family had been apart.
"It was two long months before I got to see him," she said. "We are just very happy and very proud of him."
This trip isn't the last the ship will see this year. In August, the cutter is scheduled go to Baltimore for more retrofitting and replacing other equipment, such as generators.
"They will basically ice-cream scoop the whole thing out," Terrell said.
The comments below are from users of theworldlink.com and do not necessarily represent the views of The World or Lee Enterprises. Participation Guidelines
Note: There is a maximum of 200 words per comment. If you wish to post more, please visit our forum.
Comment Policy
The World welcomes your comments about stories, and we encourage a robust dialogue on this site. All comments must meet reasonable standards of decency and civility.
Please follow these basic rules:
No defamatory comments about individuals or businesses.
No deliberately false information.
No obscenity or racially offensive language.
No harassment, verbal abuse, threats or personal attacks.
No information that invades another person's privacy.
No business solicitations or charitable solicitations.
Comments that violate these standards will not be posted. Users with repeated violations may be banned from future posting.
Comments will be approved throughout the day during business hours. After hours and weekend comments may not appear until the following business day. It may take a couple of hours before comments are approved.
The World generally does not edit comments, but we reserve the right to edit any comment that does not meet our standards.
Barb, it would have been conciderably more to send it out anywhere else and would have taken longer as well. The repair shop in Ketchikan specializes in 110ft WPB's (Patrol Boat).
Thanks for your hard work protecting our country, have a question. Why not send this boat to the repair shop in Reedsport. Would save wear/tear/gas etc. and time away from families. Also, would keep the money circulating around here.
The World welcomes your comments about stories, and we encourage a robust dialogue on this site. All comments must meet reasonable standards of decency and civility.
Please follow these basic rules:
- No defamatory comments about individuals or businesses.
- No deliberately false information.
- No obscenity or racially offensive language.
- No harassment, verbal abuse, threats or personal attacks.
- No information that invades another person's privacy.
- No business solicitations or charitable solicitations.
Comments that violate these standards will not be posted. Users with repeated violations may be banned from future posting.Comments will be approved throughout the day during business hours. After hours and weekend comments may not appear until the following business day. It may take a couple of hours before comments are approved.
The World generally does not edit comments, but we reserve the right to edit any comment that does not meet our standards.
Close Guidelines