USCGC Healy (WAGB-20)

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Career

Laid down:	16 September 1996
Launched:	15 November 1997
Commissioned:	10 November 1999
Decommissioned:	still active
Fate:
General Characteristics
Displacement:	16,000 tons
Length:	420 feet
Beam:	82 feet
Propulsion:	Diesel Electric
Speed:	17 knots max
Icebreaking Capacity:	4.5 ft @ 3 knots (continuous), 8 ft (2.44 m) Backing and Ramming
Complement:	76 (Crew), 50 (Scientists)
Aircraft:	2005- present: Helicopter support is performed by a National Science Foundation contractor. 1999-2005: 2 HH-65A Dolphin helicopters
Motto:	Promise and Deliver

Ship's Crest

The USCGC Healy is a research icebreaker put into commission in 1999 by the U.S. Coast Guard. She was constructed by Avondale Industries in New Orleans, Louisiana and named in honor of Captain "Hell Roaring" Michael A. Healy U.S.R.C.S. Her keel was laid on September 16, 1996. A spectacular launch followed on November 15, 1997. Delivered to the U.S. Coast Guard and placed "In Commission, Special" on November 10, 1999, Healy joined the icebreakers USCGC Polar Star (WAGB 10) and Polar Sea (WAGB 11) in their homeport of Seattle, Washington. The ship departed New Orleans on January 26, 2000, performing sea trials off of San Juan, Puerto Rico and in the Baffin Sea between Canada and Greenland. It arrived in Seattle on August 9, 2000 after transiting the famed Northwest Passage and was placed "In Commission, Active" on August 21, 2000.

Designed to conduct a wide range of research activities, Healy provides more than 4,200 square feet of scientific laboratory space, numerous electronic sensor systems, oceanographic winches, and accommodations for up to 50 scientists. Healy is also designed to break 4.5 feet of ice continuously at three knots and can operate in temperatures as low as -50 °F. The science community provided invaluable input on lab lay-outs and science capabilities during design and construction of the ship.

Healy at sea

As a Coast Guard cutter, Healy is also a capable platform for supporting other potential missions in the polar regions, including logistics, search and rescue, ship escort, environmental protection, and enforcement of laws and treaties.

On August 17, 2006, LT Jessica Hill and PO2 Stephen Duque died of unspecified causes during diving operations in the Arctic Ocean. The circumstances of the accident are under investigation by the U.S. Coast Guard. The Coast Guard is conducting simultaneous safety and administraive investigations the results of which are expected to be made public in early 2007. Initial press reports indicated that the divers were conducting an inspection of the rudder, a routine operation, at the time of the accident; but later reports state that the two were doing a cold-water training dive near the bow of the ship. The dive was reported to have been planned for a maximum depth of 20 feet. LT Hill's father, citing autopsy reports, has indicated that his daughter actually reached a depth of near 200 feet in what he described an out of control descent. The divers were tended by personnel on the surface. It is not clear why they extended so much line to the divers. By the time the two could be pulled to the surface, oxygen reserves were emptied and neither diver could not be revived. On August 30, Commanding Officer Captain Douglas G. Russell was temporarily relieved of command by Vice Admiral Charles Wuster citing a "loss of confidence" in Russell's ability to command. The relief was later made permanent by Admiral Thad Allen, Coast Guard Commandant. Russell was initially replaced by CAPT Daniel K. Oliver, the previous CO of Healy who Russell had relieved only two months earlier. Oliver returned to his regular staff job a short time later, when Captain Ted Lindstrom was named the new permanent Commanding Officer. Lindstom has commanded four previous Coast Guard cutters, and was Chief of Response for the Coast Guard's 13th District in Seattle, Washington prior to returning to sea.

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