Can someone provide me with information about our Coast Guard? Im kinda curious on its equipment, size, and generally everything about it

Thank you

They have a website. Try that.

I found this article and i believe this is a very interesting topic, quite old though but still worth the discussion.

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Safety at sea


THE RECENT collision between a Super Ferry and a smaller ship that killed at least 38 people has once again put the spotlight on the Philippine Coast Guard. One "usual" irregularity -- unmanifested passengers -- was again discovered. At least 12 people were not listed on the manifest of the MV San Nicolas and 16 people whose names appeared on the tickets sold did not actually board the ship.

Vice Admiral Reuben Lista, Coast Guard commander, immediately relieved Romeo Magallado, station commander of Coron town in Palawan province, from where the ill-fated MV San Nicolas had sailed for Manila. The relief was ordered even before the investigation of the collision could start.


Fine, but is it going to be always like this: that top officers will act only after people have died? Something has to be done to make the officers in the Coast Guard stations all over the country shape up and do their work to prevent the overloading of ships and the boarding of ships by people whose names are not on the manifest.

The recent collision also showed that the Coast Guard could perform its work better if it had modern ships and equipment. A case in point is the good work done by the Coast Guard men aboard the BRP Ilocos Norte. A day before it was commissioned, the BRP Ilocos Norte, a state-of-the-art search-and-rescue vessel, helped save 70 passengers of the MV San Nicolas.

The good news is that five more rescue ships, worth about 75 million dollars, are expected to be delivered this year. All these ships have high-tech apparatus for the rapid recovery of survivors and the coordination of rescue operations. And these ships, which have a top speed of 24 knots (24 nautical miles per hour) can reach the site of sea disasters quickly.

The bad news is that radar equipment worth 1.2 billion pesos that could have prevented collisions are rotting in 16 stations throughout the country. Some of the equipment was used briefly but the others were not used at all because of technical problems arising from the contract. It seems now that this equipment for the Global Marine Disaster Signal System has become obsolete and has been superseded by the Automatic Identification System.

Lista said that with AIS the Coast Guard could tell meeting ships what course to take in a matter of seconds. The system is similar to that used by air controllers to prevent the collision of airplanes. We hope the acquisition of the new system will be facilitated.

The recent collision should make the executive and legislative departments do something about the lack of men and vessels of the Coast Guard to carry out its many functions. It has only about 4,003 officers and men to patrol and safeguard the 36,289-kilometer coastline of the archipelago.

On average, each Coast Guard man has to guard two islands, nine kilometers of coastline and nine square kilometers of coral reefs. Besides, 98 percent of domestic trade depends on sea transport, the country is 11th in terms of fish production in the world and 22 tropical typhoons hit the country every year.

It's a good thing the lack of ships is now being attended to. Thirty-two ships were scheduled to be delivered to the Coast Guard starting December 2002 and one ship every month thereafter until 2005.

The Coast Guard is mandated by law to enforce laws and rules pertinent to maritime shipping, immigration, customs, quarantine, fisheries and other areas of national interest. It enforces laws to promote the safety of life and property within Philippine jurisdiction and in the high seas. It also operates rescue facilities and enforces rules for the maritime environmental protection of the territorial waters of the country.

In reality, one Coast Guard officer said, the service is often reduced only to the counting of heads at sea ports and rescuing people whenever there is a sea disaster. Very often it is the Marines or the Navy, which have more men and ships, that performs the other functions.

This should not be the case. The Philippine Coast Guard has to take a more active role in the enforcement of pertinent laws and regulations while going about its daily patrol of the country's extensive coastline. But it has to be given the men and the equipment that will enable it to perform its task efficiently. In most instances, this is literally a matter of life and death, and so we hope that both the legislative and executive departments will give priority to the Coast Guard's requirements.

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Ladies & Gents,

So how far has the Coast Guard gone from this one?

They are now implementing the ISPS Code and seems doing well. Recently confiscated some explosive materials in our port area.

What is this ISPS Code, saver?

Could you tell us more about this?

:armycheers:

In response to the continuing threats relating to maritime security right after 9-11, the IMO (International Maritime Organization) of which the Philippines is a signatory, has come up with a new regulation which is the International Ship and Port Facility Security (ISPS) Code. This took effect worldwide last July 1, 2004.

http://www.imo.org/Newsroom/mainframe.asp?...583&doc_id=2689
http://fleet.inmarsat.com/F77_security.htm

Here, the Ship Owners (Company), the Ship (Crewmembers) and the Port Facilities Authorities work hand in hand in securing ships of their responsibilities. Company's make their own security plans to be adopted by Ships personnel in any eventualities which is to be approved by I think the Flag State of which the Ship is registered. They also provide for the equipments to be needed such as cameras, sonars, electric fences, AIS GPS, etc. Ship's personnel on their part implement the policies on board, checks their ships and its surroundings while in port and at sea. Crew (seaman) are required to undergo trainings with officers assigned as Ship's Security Officers making observations and reports to the Company assigned Security Officer. Port Facilities has their own Security Officers providing Ships of any information and alert levels (1, 2, 3).

Other countries, like the U.S. in addition to the ISPS at times makes their own security measures like notices of Ships about 24 hours or more prior to their arrival. Countries not implementing the code creates problems for ships coming from their area as this means more scrutiny from the Port Facilities and sometimes refused entry to the ports as you could see in some news of vessels being held.

As for the Philippines, the Maritime Sector has been pushing for its implementation prior to July 2004. Maybe due to shortage of personnel and means, the Super Ferry incident was a wake-up call. You could now see in the news of illegal arms and weapons being confiscated because of this code. But recent surveys, it is yet to be implemented in other ports of the country.

With the JI and piracy getting strong in the SEA seas, the U.S. has offered to patrol the area with Singapore endorsing it being a shipping hub. Other ASEAN nations refused as they said they could handle the joint patrol. I believe the anti-piracy network is based in Malaysia.

The link is found above. :armywink:

PDFF rocks!

After 38 years: PCG wallows in murky missions

The Freeman 10/26/2005

For lack of maritime strategy, the Philippine Coast Guard celebrated its 38th year this month minus its safety and security missions.

Coast Guard commandant, Vice Admiral Arthur Gosingan, who was in Cebu yesterday, roused up his men to keep the spirit despite having lost their safety mission with the enactment of RA 9295 and security mission with the creation of the Office for Transportation Security.

The Coast Guard was created in 1967 through RA 5173 with a four-pronged mission including safety, security, search and rescue and environment protection. But the domestic shipping law transferred Coast Guard's safety mission to the Maritime Industry Authority last year. While Malacañang-issued Executive Order 311 stripped the Coast Guard of its security mission when it designated the Office for Transportation Security as the sole agency for maritime security.

Commodore Ramon Liwag said that without a maritime strategy, the Coast Guard's mission is desecrated finding policies overlap and the administration of maritime operations go haywire. Report card
Liwag, who is district commander for Central and Eastern Visayas, gave a report card on the accomplishments of his command in 2004 including the issuance of 10,467 certificates to seaworthy domestic ships and revenue collection of P8.5 million.

There were 73 reported apprehensions on safety breaches.

The regional command, that has a combined strength of seven stations including Cebu, Dumaguete, Maasin, Tagbilaran, Catbalogan, Tacloban and Ormoc, registered 160,448 pre-departure inspections last year.

Liwag said search and rescue operating units under his command accomplished 61 search and rescue operations where 361 persons were rescued earning for the BRP Pampanga the Search and Rescue Ship of the Year award.

In law enforcement, there were 53 apprehensions that led to the seizure of 74 firearms, contraband worth P7 million and forest products worth P8 million. There were also 12 apprehensions on illegal fishing in a joint operation with the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources. A Taiwanese fishing boat was among those seized and fined $100,000.

Sea marshals continue to be deployed on ships but yesterday Liwag surprised the audience when he announced about forming an anti-terrorist task force to enhance local security.

While the Coast Guard station in Cebu was awarded station of the year for the second consecutive year, much is yet to be done on maritime investigation. There have been at least five maritime incidents and accidents in Cebu this year but the district command still has to convene a special marine inquiry board to determine ship operation lapses, its causes and agencies responsible for lapses.

Asked what is taking the local command so long to convene an inquiry board, Gosingan said, "I will look into that." - Ruth G. Mercado

The Coast Guard should NEVER lose hope.

TIME CHANGES. :exactly:

They must understand that we are an archipelagic state and that their mission (setting aside this RA9295 for this case) is crucial to securing maritime safety.

Time will come when BETTER politicians will realize this blunder and amend this law to finally correct this mistake.

IF THE U.S. DECIDED TO IMPROVE ITS COAST GUARD, THEN WHY SHOULDN'T WE?

Money alone?

Well, time will change.

They have good politicians and we dont?

Let's change our pool of politicians then! :armywink:

Hi guys. Isn't hunting down and protecting the Philippine seas from pirates and smugglers the job of the Philippine Coast Guard rather than the Philippine Navy? If so, then the PCG should get a bigger slice of the budget pie since the way I see it, protection from piracy and smuggling is a much greater priority than external defense from hostile nations.

Right now both PCG and PN. With the trend now post 9-11, its everybodies and agencies concern. So you can add up the DILG-PNPMG, DENR, DA/BFAR, DoF/Customs, DoJ/NBI/BI etc. One way of saving is joint effort and coordination, as well as sharing of existing assets.

Just like what you said kid, what should be prioritized with our limited budget, external or internal? :dunno:

MISSION / FUNCTIONS OF THE PHILIPPINE COAST GUARD

Pulse of the Maritime Environment

The Coast Guard today, as a seagoing agency, is faced with the enormous task to perform the multifarious functions of safeguarding the country's vital sea-lanes from maritime lawlessness, preserving its marine resources and promoting Safety of Life and Property at Sea with its limited resources.
In the accomplishment of this mission, the PCG performed various activities categorized under the five functional areas, namely:

Maritime Safety Administration (MARSAD)
Maritime Search and Rescue (MARSAR)
Marine Environmental Protection (MAREP)
Maritime Law Enforcement (MARLEN), and
Maritime Operations (MAROPS).

The Maritime Safety Administration function of the PCG is to ensure the seaworthiness of the vessels plying the waters through the conduct of Port State Control inspection of foreign vessel, among others.
It also enforces the vessel safety regulatory standards on domestic vessels through the conduct of Flag State control inspections, Emergency Readiness Evaluations, Mandatory Pre-Departure Inspections, SOLAS Equipment Inspections and the accreditation of suppliers and manufacturers of SOLAS appliances.
It also ensures navigational safety through the development, establishment, maintenance and operation of Aids to Navigation.
The PCG also establishes navigational rules and traffic separation schemes; regulates the construction of bridges and structures over navigable waterways; supervises salvage operations; regulates regattas and marine parades and conducts inspection of maritime training schools as member of the Maritime Training Council.

On Maritime Search and Rescue, the PCG maintains a 24-hour distress monitoring, response and relief activities in aid of persons or vessels in distress at sea.
The Command obtains information about the distress or incident then disseminates it to nearby units capable of providing initial assistance, and immediately launches its own search and rescue operations.

On Marine Environmental Protection the PCG, as mandated by PD. 600 and PD. 601 as amended by PD 979 is the sole agency responsible for maritime oil pollution prevention, mitigation and control through the conduct of marine pollution monitoring and control, operation and the enhancement of PCG capability in oil spill response operations and enforcement of all applicable marine environmental laws and regulations.

On Maritime Law Enforcement functions, the PCG being a maritime law enforcement functions particularly on anti-smuggling, anti-piracy, illegal fishing, illegal entry, illegal logging, laws on dangerous drugs and other applicable laws as stipulated in the Memorandum Of Agreement among the 21 other government agencies.

On Maritime Operations, the PCG performs maritime security operations to protect our ports, harbors and coastal waters and exercises control of shipping, maritime communications and strategic port facilities in time of emergency.
Another significant functions under maritime operations is the enhancement of community affairs activities, particularly through the development and involvement of the 19,000-strong Philippine Coast Guard Auxiliary and Sea Scouts.
The PCG's area of responsibility covers a maritime area of 2,795,962 sq km, a stretch of 35,000 km of coastlines, which is twice longer than that of the United States, 7,107 islands and with a large portion of the populace that relies heavily on maritime commerce. More than a million vessels of various types traverse the Philippine seas annually while 98 percent of domestic trade depends on sea transport. Despite limited manpower, the PCG was able to perform its mandated functions.


JUST LIKE THE COAST GUARDS OF OTHER COUNTRIES, THE PCG IS LIKEWISE BEING DEVELOPED TO TAKE ACTIVE ROLE AS LEAD AGENCY IN THE CONDUCT OF MARITIME SECURITY. THIS IS TO ENABLE THE PCG TO EFFECTIVELY IMPLEMENT THE ISPS CODE BEGINNING JUNE 2004.