Photo By Petty Officer 1st Class Victoria Mejicanos | NAVAL BASE GUAM, Guam (June 2, 2023) Volunteers and Sailors assigned to the submarine...... read more read more
POLARIS POINT NAVAL BASE GUAM, Guam (June 3, 2023) -- After Typhoon Mawar hit the small island of Guam, many residents on U.S. Naval Base Guam were left without power. Many of the island’s residents compared Typhoon Mawar to Super Typhoon Pongsona, which was one of the most intense typhoons to ever strike the island. After Pongsona struck the island in 2002, an assessment team was formed to examine the effects of the storm. Even though provisions were made in preparation for another storm of the same magnitude, the direct hit by Typhoon Mawar had severely stressed the existing infrastructure.
The physical damage caused by the typhoon was limited due to the hard work of Sailors from the submarine tenders USS Emory S. Land (AS 39) (ESL) and USS Frank Cable (AS 40) (FCB) who had been tasked with preparing Polaris Point before the storm. Their efforts included preparing sand bags, removing debris, removing hazardous materials from the waterfront, and ensuring the readiness of the Emergent Repair Facility. However, the winds in excess of 125 knots still caused significant damage to above-ground power lines and to many of the island’s power generation facilities. Sailors from ESL and FCB, along with Seabees from Task Force 75, immediately pitched in to install and maintain emergency generators and to assist the base Public Works Department, Naval Facilities Engineering Command, and Guam Power Authority in restoring power to military installations and housing areas across the island.
“I heard that they needed volunteers at the Orote Power Plant on base and could use personnel that are smart with mechanics on diesel engines,” said Machinist’s Mate (Nuclear) 1st Class Tybalt Ridgard, assigned to ESL, from Hawthorne, Fla. “I’m a nuclear trained machinist’s mate, so although that’s not my specialty, I was sure I could help out somehow.”
Multiple crew members of the submarine tenders volunteered to provide assistance with the recovery of Orote Point Power Plant, to include Machinist’s Mate Auxiliary 1st Class Edward Going, assigned to ESL, from Natural Bridge, N.Y.
“When I joined the Navy, I wanted a change and an opportunity to a better career path,” Going said. “When I saw the opportunity to help, I knew I wanted to give back and to put my skills to use for something bigger.”
Orote Point Power Plant was constructed to be a standby generation unit to supplement Guam Power Authority’s island-wide distribution system. The plant can also be used as an emergency source for essential facilities, but has been in a long-term layup for major structural and electrical work that was scheduled to complete next year. Nevertheless, diesel and electrical experts from ESL, FCB, and the local Performance Monitoring Team (PMT) were able to make emergency repairs and restore one 6 MW diesel engine to operation on May 31. The work included repairing and reinstalling cooling systems, replacing engine gaskets and expansion boots, and devising options to route the power output to key distribution systems despite significant electrical switchgear removed for overhaul. Sailors hand-cut the needed gaskets from a large sheet of material that was available from the ship.
Sailors from ESL and FCB also played a key role in other vital tasks, including connecting emergency generators to the base Commissary and cold food storage, fitness center, and barracks, repairing damaged air conditioners at the barracks and at McCool Elementary and Middle School, supporting underwater inspections of the harbor and vessels, and in moving merchandise and books out of the Navy-Marine Corps Relief Society Thrift Store and base library before mold damage could set in.
“Our Sailors have an impressive range of mechanical, electrical, diving, and other technical skills, as well as tremendous creativity” said Capt. Brent Spillner, commanding officer of the Emory S. Land. “Every time they hear about a generator or air conditioning plant not working properly, they take that as a personal challenge, and I’m convinced that there’s absolutely nothing they can’t repair or rebuild.”
“I was happy that my efforts successfully contributed to the power restoration on base,” said Ridgard.
A Combined Joint Task Force led by U.S. Army Pacific and Task Force West are the DoD representatives supporting FEMA and the governments of Guam and the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands as we continue recovery efforts in the wake of Typhoon Mawar. Commander Task Force West Rear Adm. Benjamin Nicholson, and all military installation commanding officers in Guam are diligently working to restore steady state to the bases, and dedicate resources to all FEMA mission assignments. Typhoon Mawar moved through the area as a Category 4 storm on May 24, bringing hurricane-force winds, heavy rain and high seas marking the strongest storm to affect the island since Typhoon Pongson.
Guam is home to the U.S. Navy's only submarine tenders, Emory S. Land and USS Frank Cable (AS 40), as well as several Los Angeles-class fast-attack submarines. The submarine tenders are tasked to provide expeditionary intermediate level maintenance and repairs, services, and logistics support to submarines. The submarines and tenders are maintained as part of the U.S. Navy's forward-deployed submarine force and are readily capable of meeting global operational requirements.
For more information about USS Emory S. Land (AS 39), visit us at http://www.csp.navy.mil/emorysland/ or like us on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/EmorySLand.
For more news from USS Emory S. Land (AS 39), visit http://www.navy.mil/local/as39/.
| Date Taken: | 06.03.2023 |
| Date Posted: | 06.14.2023 20:02 |
| Story ID: | 447205 |
| Location: | GU |
| Web Views: | 532 |
| Downloads: | 1 |
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