For Immediate Release

September 5, 2001

COAST GUARD SCUTTLES PLAN TO CLOSE QUILLAYUTE RIVER STATION

WASHINGTON, D.C. – The U.S. Coast Guard informed three members of the Washington State delegation in Congress today that it had decided against closing the Quillayute River Station at La Push, following recent tragic accidents and an extensive review of search and rescue capabilities on the Olympic Peninsula.

Coast Guard Commandant James M. Loy informed U.S. Senators Patty Murray, Maria Cantwell and U.S. Rep. Norm Dicks that the proposal to transfer Coast Guard assets from La Push to other locations “has been eliminated as an option for the immediate future.”  The Washington lawmakers had urged the Coast Guard to review the plan, based upon community concern about the loss of rescue capability on the western end of the Olympic Peninsula.

In making the announcement reversing the proposed closure, the Coast Guard also said it was launching a new investigation to analyze the allocation of Coast Guard resources to meet the needs of the area.  Rear Admiral Erroll Brown, Commander, Thirteenth Coast Guard District said that the investigation “will be used to help form the Coast Guard’s future search and rescue presence in the Pacific Northwest.”

“I am very pleased that the Coast Guard has responded to our request to reconsider this closure, especially in light of the two recent boating tragedies that resulted in the loss of five lives,” said Sen. Murray, who serves as Chair of the Transportation Appropriations Subcommittee in the Senate, with jurisdiction over the Coast Guard. “The safety and economic impacts of this closure must be reevaluated in light of these recent tragedies,” she said.

Starting with the Transportation Appropriations Subcommittee hearing chaired by Senator Murray in Seattle on June 1st, Sen. Murray has been engaged in an ongoing dialogue with the Coast Guard leadership regarding the plans for closure.

Sen. Maria Cantwell also was personally involved in the effort to review the Coast Guard’s reallocation of assets in the region.  “The Coast Guard has made the right decision for the safety of those in Puget Sound and the Strait of Juan de Fuca.  The recent tragedies highlight the fact that we must increase the Coast Guard presence in the region rather than shuffle existing resources,"  Sen. Cantwell stated.

“This is a very encouraging decision,” said Rep. Dicks, who represents the Olympic Peninsula in the House.  “Because of frequently adverse weather conditions, we were concerned about the loss of prompt rescue capability at the far end of the Peninsula,” he said.

Offices of all three lawmakers have been engaged in an extensive public meeting process this summer to discuss the impact of the potential closure, during which substantial community opposition arose. 

The Quillayute River Coast Guard Station was originally established in 1929. Currently it includes an area of responsibility that extends from Cape Alava, south to Queets River, including the treacherous inlet at the mouth of the Quillayute River.  The station’s boat crews are trained to conduct rescues in rough weather using one or both of the available 44-foot motor lifeboats, which are capable of taking up to 25-foot surf and 50-knot winds. By keeping a 24-hour communications watch, the station is able to respond to distress calls over marine band radio or telephone, and station personnel are also trained to assist the local police department, fire department and park service operations.

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