Photo By Petty Officer 1st Class Alexander Kubitza | 180412-N-PM193-091 SAN DIEGO (April 12, 2018) Damage Controlman 1st Class Raquel...... read more read more
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SAN DIEGO – Amphibious assault ship USS Boxer (LHD 4) successfully completed the Mobility Damage Control Warfare (MOB-D) 1.3 assessment, April 13, scoring above 90 percent overall, moving Boxer closer to certifying as deployment ready.
MOB-D is a multiple-stage certification assessment that includes a comprehensive review of the material readiness of damage control equipment, shipboard training in damage control fundamentals and assessing the crew’s level of knowledge in damage control tactics, techniques and procedures.
“I feel relief in the fact that the ship is ready for the next step, and I’m proud to see that the ship worked together,” said Lt. Cmdr. Patricia Palmer, Boxer’s damage control assistant. “There were a lot of people who really went out of their way to support this inspection.”
Afloat Training Group (ATG), Pacific assessed the crew's ability to respond to several distinct damage control and battle casualty scenarios, including fires, flooding, toxic gas leaks, chemical, biological, and radiological attacks, major conflagration and loss of power for the assessment.
“During MOB-D we come on board and inspect damage control equipment inside the engineering spaces,” said Chief Damage Controlman Tyson Warlick, an ATG assessor. “After that week is 1.1B, where we look at damage control equipment outside the engineering spaces. After that, we begin 1.2, which is all the training for the damage control watch teams, IET (in-port emergency team), flying squad, repair lockers, and rescue and assistance. During the final week, we begin the actual drilling cycle; that’s two weeks spent assessing all repair lockers, flying squad, flooding, fire, structural damage and toxic gas.”
Fighting the ship depends on the level of knowledge and skills of Sailors throughout the command, not just Engineering department.
"Damage control is everyone’s responsibility,” said Palmer. “We’ve seen what has happened recently in the fleet and we want to ensure Boxer Sailors are safe.”
Boxer’s Damage Control Training Team (DCTT) spent several weeks training crewmembers during drills and training camps to increase Sailors' level of knowledge on basic damage control procedures, including fire hose handling, pipe patching, and applying shoring to defend against structural damage.
“The Damage Control Training Team helped a lot and the lockers were really hungry to learn,” said Chief Damage Controlman John Potter, DCTT coordinator. “I think the best part was seeing them go from not knowing much at all, even within the two days of training and back to back drills, to seeing them progress and get better and better.”
Successfully completing MOB-D demonstrates that Boxer Sailors trained and qualified to fight casualties and ensure the ship’s survivability. Boxer Sailors can now begin focusing on the next mission sets and priorities of the Basic Phase of the deployment cycle.
Boxer is currently in its homeport preparing for Commander, Naval Surface Forces-Pacific sea trials.
For more news from USS Boxer (LHD-4) visit http://www.navy.mil/local/lhd4/.
| Date Taken: | 04.13.2018 |
| Date Posted: | 04.19.2018 16:08 |
| Story ID: | 273736 |
| Location: | SAN DIEGO, CALIFORNIA, US |
| Web Views: | 255 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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