Atlantic Strike Team heads to Canada for international exercise Published Aug. 1, 2013 By Lt. Kristen Potter U.S. Coast Guard Atlantic Strike Team JOINT BASE MCGUIRE-DIX-LAKEHURST, N.J. -- The Coast Guard Atlantic Strike Team joined 58 other federal, state, local, industry and international partners to participate in the Canadian-U.S. Atlantic Joint Preparedness Team 2013 Full Scale Response Exercise from June 17-21, 2013. The AST was invited to take part in this unique international exercise, which was conducted concurrently in three different locations throughout the U.S. and Canada. AST directly supported the exercise by providing ten personnel, in two of the three locations. The biennial exercise is designed to test response portions of the Joint Marine Pollution Contingency Plan, focusing on the Atlantic Coast and to strengthen U.S.-Canadian partnerships and interoperability. It ensures overall response preparedness, enhances the individual skill of participants, and ensures that in the case of an environmental response incident, such as an oil spill, that resources would be available and effectively deployed. The exercise had two primary functions: an incident management portion which involved the set up and activation of the incident command system and an equipment deployment exercise. AST members contributed to the success of both portions. At the Incident Command Post in Calais, Maine, responders were given a scenario which involved two vessels colliding in a major oil discharge in Canadian waters. AST provided with two team members functioning as coaches and evaluators for personnel involved in command functions, planning and operations as the incident management team prepped for possible movement of oil into U.S. waters. "This was an incredible chance to team up with the very same partners we would be responding with on an actual pollution response, and gave everyone the opportunity to further those excellent working relationships and learn from each other," said Dean Matthews, AST training coordinator. Additionally, AST led the equipment deployment portion of the exercise in Saint John, Canada, coordinating both a boom deployment and theuse of an oil skimming system off of two vessels. Utilizing the Coast Guard Cutter Marcus Hanna in Portland, Maine, and the Halifax based Canadian Coast Guard Cutter Edward Cornwallis, the Vessel of Opportunity Skimming System was deployed both pier side and out in the open water. AST members provided safety oversight and trained U.S. and Canadian crews on the equipment use. Because the VOSS can be used on many different types of ships during an oil spill response, including military and commercial vessels, this was an excellent venue to demonstrate its effectiveness and interoperability with our international partners.