NEW ORLEANS – A Coast Guard Reservist and Gainesville, Fla., resident returned home from an extended tour of duty for the Deepwater Horizon oil spill response Wednesday.
Drilling out of Coast Guard Sector Miami, Petty Officer 2nd Jasmine Montanez was called to active duty to join the Gulf Coast Incident Management Team in July 2012.
“Over the last 19 months, I worked with and met a lot of great people, but I ‘m glad to be finally heading home,” Montanez said.
During her deployment, Montanez worked as a Shoreline Cleanup Assessment Team member in Houma, La., Pensacola Fla., and Gulf Shores, Ala., where she responded to 150 National Response Center reports of shoreline re-oiling, oversaw operations for 87 miles of shoreline and conducted over 200 operational mission surveys.
She was awarded the Coast Guard Achievement Medal Service for her unwavering commitment, steadfast leadership and a tireless work ethic.
This was her second deployment to the Deepwater Horizon Response.
At the conclusion of this deployment, Montanez will be returning home to Gainesville, Fla., She plans to go to college for Occupational Therapy. Montanez joined the Coast Guard in 2008.