Category: United States Navy

Source: United States Navy

General Mechanical Corporation (GMC) from Daytona Beach, Florida, has embarked on an ambitious $10.6 million construction contract to restore the storm-battered dunes at Naval Station (NAVSTA) Mayport. Awarded by Naval Facilities Engineering Systems Command (NAVFAC) Southeast in September 2023, the contract sets a new course for the restoration of coastal defenses that were ravaged by Hurricanes Ian and Nicole, as well as ongoing tidal erosion.

By early July, sand mining operations were underway. The first major task was to extract and prepare the large quantity of sand needed for the project. The goal is to restore the dunes to a height of 12-14 feet, which is crucial for shielding the base from future storm surges.

“A key element to this project is to ensure the habitat protection of native animals that live or nest in the dunes,” said Benjamin Yang, construction manager assigned to Public Works Department at NAVSTA Mayport. “The team has maintained a vigilant watch over a Loggerhead turtle nest, waiting for the hatchlings to make their way to the sea before proceeding with work in that area.”

Orange barriers were erected to mark and protect any vulnerable nests that could be affected by the ongoing dune project.

The project also includes replacing the fencing between the base and the adjoining civilian park and beach at Kathryn Abbey Hanna Park (Hanna Park), establishing a much-needed security buffer. Additionally, storm-damaged facilities, such as boardwalks, will be repaired.

By mid-August, GMC had already made significant progress. Of the 64,000 cubic yards of sand needed, nearly 40,000 cubic yards had been mined, with 8,000 cubic yards screened and 9,000 cubic yards transported and placed on the dunes.

Sand was extracted from a designated dredge material management area within NAVSTA Mayport. A Powerscreen sorts raw ground materials and reduces them to usable aggregate sizes, which are then used to build up the dunes.

“We’re screening between 1,000 and 1,200 cubic yards of sand and transporting around 100 truckloads — about 1,400 cubic yards — a day to the beach,” said Dillon Moyer, superintendent, Continental Heavy Civil Corporation (CHC). “The initial completion target is March 2025, but with our current pace, we’re aiming to wrap up by December 29, weather and equipment permitting.”

Just south of NAVSTA Mayport, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) is working to restore dunes at Hanna Park and moving northward toward the base. Their efforts complement GMC’s work, with plans to transition seamlessly to NAVSTA Mayport’s beach upon completing the Hanna Park project. Once the transition to NAVSTA Mayport begins, USACE will operate around the clock for about a month to achieve their milestones at the base.

The synchronized efforts of GMC, CHC, and USACE are a testament to the collaborative spirit needed to restore and fortify the dunes and security at NAVSTA Mayport. With each passing day, the sandy beaches are being reshaped, not just as a defense against future storms but as a promise to protect and preserve the natural habitat for generations to come.

NAVFAC Southeast oversees the planning, designing, and construction of facility projects, and provides essential services in contracting, leasing, environmental management, maintenance, and contingency support. These services are vital for meeting the needs of the Navy and the Department of Defense within the Southeast region. Operating from its Jacksonville office, NAVFAC Southeast manages operations across Navy installations from Charleston, South Carolina, to Corpus Christi, Texas, and extends to Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. NAVFAC professionals also handle the acquisition and disposition of real estate, facility management, and maintenance on all Navy bases in the Southeast region, while overseeing public-private venture (PPV) housing for military families.

Source: United States Navy

During July 2024, Naval Medical Leader and Professional Development Command (NMLPDC) held the annual 4-week in-person Military Tropical Medicine (MTM) didactic course for 43 students at the Uniformed Services University of Health Sciences. The didactic phase of the course was immediately followed by a 2-week hands-on field experience for 92 students throughout eight tropical infectious disease endemic locations around the globe during August 2024.

The MTM course, offered as in-person and online, provides tri-service military medical providers with didactic content and hands-on field experiences to diagnose, treat and prevent infectious diseases to protect the Joint Force against tropical endemic health threats and provide healthcare to partner nations during global health engagement missions.

“We often don’t receive this content in medical school or graduate medical education programs,” said Capt. Todd Gleason, MC, USN, MTM course director. “Our student body is [tri-service] nurses, physicians, lab technicians, pathology residents and aerospace medicine residents and we are able to discuss the power that we bring to the team.”

Select students who completed the MTM course (in-person or online) had a follow-on opportunity to engage with host nation military medical ships, hospitals, laboratories, and various healthcare professionals during 2-week field experiences in Brazil, Thailand, Liberia, Peru, Ghana, India, Honduras, and Tanzania to apply knowledge gained in the classroom to work on the ground in austere tropical environments.

Capt. Katie Shobe, MSC, USN, NMLPDC Commanding Officer, had an opportunity to visit one of the field training sites. “I participated in the mission to Peru, where we conducted several exercises in Lima and Tumbes, including cultural familiarization, visiting the Lima Peruvian Naval Hospital (Centro Medico Naval, or CEMENA) and their patients, Naval Medical Research Unit-SOUTH to learn about their mission and projects in the AOR, learning to conduct surveillance with mosquitoes, cysticercosis in pigs, small mammal trapping and baiting, and rodent necropsy. “

In addition to the classroom and field experiences, Capt. Gleeson and his fellow MTM course team members, LCDR Tupur Husain, MSC, USN, HM1 Danielle Spivey, USN, HM1 Michael Boateng, and HM1 Jayden Ryan, USN administered an online asynchronous MTM course from August 2023 to June 2024 for 287 students, which greatly expanded course access to military medical providers who cannot attend the in-person option.

“I came away with profound gratitude and appreciation for what our NMLPDC MTM team does, including coordinating with our partner organizations in the 8 OCONUS locations,” said Shobe. “An immense amount of work goes into the 4 weeks of coursework and labs. Bravo Zulu to the MTM Team!”

Continuing on the momentum of the highly successful in-person, virtual, and field exercises this year, the MTM staff will hold the following upcoming course options over the next year for tri-service medical providers: Online-Asynchronous course (September 2024 to June 2025), in-person course (July 7 to August 1, 2025 in Bethesda, MD), and field missions (1 August to 17 August, 2025) in Ghana, Brazil, India, Peru, Liberia, Honduras, Tanzania, and Thailand.

Interested tri-service medical providers can visit the CAC enabled NMLPDC course site for additional MTM course information at:

https://obiwan2.health.mil/sites/nmfsc/apps/ACR/SitePages/courseInfo.aspx or via email:

usn.bethesda.navmedleadprodevcmd.list.nmlpdc-mtm@health.mil

Naval Medical Leader and Professional Development Command (NMLPDC) is the cornerstone of Navy Medicine’s leader and professional development supporting Force Generation and Development of the Naval and Joint Forces. NMLPDC is a tenant command located at Naval Support Activity, Bethesda, MD.

Source: United States Navy

NEWPORT, R.I. – Secretary of the Navy Carlos Del Toro delivered remarks at the Forum at Newport, a conference about national security and climate change co-hosted by the Naval War College and the Pell Center at Salve Regina University, Sept. 5.

Secretary Del Toro talked about Department of the Navy efforts to counter the impacts of extreme weather and climate change on warfighting readiness. He outlined two goals of the Department’s new Climate Action 2030 strategy to ensure a climate-ready force – building climate resilience and reducing climate threats.

He noted that while many initiatives are already underway or complete, such as the Farragut Seawall project at U.S. Naval Academy, innovative partnerships with government, academia and industry must continue.

“Climate resilience is force resilience,” said Secretary Del Toro. “We must look beyond normal operations and approach solutions to climate change through the lens of innovation.”

Following his remarks, Secretary Del Toro met with Stephen Mariano, provost of NWC, and Rear Adm. Darryl Walker, president of NWC. They discussed the linkage between climate change and national security as a seminar topic in NWC’s new course, Perspectives on Modern War. The yearlong course combines theoretical analysis of war with development of practical solutions for current and future global security challenges.

Secretary Del Toro praised Perspectives on Modern War as an example of the Navy’s academic institutions adapting to modern security challenges, like climate change, and the value of these institutions to develop future strategic leaders.

“When I meet with senior officers I often tell them I expect them to be brilliant at naval warfare,” said Secretary Del Toro. “I really need them to think critically and strategically about solutions to the dynamic challenges our Navy and Marine Corps face — a course like this will help grow future leaders with those critical skills.”

PMW is now one of five core course offerings provided by NWC’s College of Naval Command and Staff, College of Naval Warfare, Naval Command College and Naval Staff College. NWC’s curriculum provides a framework for military and civilian leaders to gain an understanding of strategy and operations and the ability to think critically, deal with uncertainty and surprise, be proficient in joint matters, and comprehend both the security environment and all elements of national power.

Established in 1884, NWC is the oldest institution of its kind in the world. The college delivers excellence in education, research, and outreach, informing today’s decision makers, educating tomorrow’s leaders, and engaging partners and allies on all matters of naval power in order to preserve the peace, respond in crisis, and win decisively in war.

Source: United States Navy

The Honorable Carlos Del Toro, Secretary of the Navy, will deliver the principal address at the commissioning ceremony. Remarks will also be provided by the Honorable Matt Gaetz, U.S. Representative, Florida’s 1st District; Admiral Lisa Franchetti, Chief of Naval Operations; General Christopher Mahoney, Assistant Commandant of the Marine Corps; and Ms. Kari Wilkinson, Executive Vice President, HII, and President, Ingalls Shipbuilding. The ship’s sponsors are the granddaughters of its namesake, Shana McCool and Kate Oja.

Richard M. McCool, Jr. will be the 13th San Antonio-class ship commissioned in the United States Navy, and the first U.S. Navy ship to bear this namesake.

“Captain McCool’s leadership in the face of grave danger and his acts of heroism to save the crew and the ship our nation entrusted to him are indeed an example for all throughout,” said Secretary Del Toro. “I am proud that the Department of the Navy is pursuing the award of the Amphibious Multi-Ship Procurement Contract for a total of three San Antonio Class amphibious ships—just like USS Richard M. McCool Jr.—along with an America Class amphibious assault ship. I am proud to see these Sailors and Marines bring this incredible warship to life in service to our nation, much like this ship’s courageous namesake.”

The Navy named LPD 29 to honor U.S. Navy Capt. Richard M. McCool, Jr., Ret., who received the Medal of Honor in 1945 for his heroism. Kamikaze aircraft attacked his ship during the Battle of Okinawa. Despite suffering from shrapnel wounds and painful burns, he led efforts to battle a blazing fire on his ship and rescue injured sailors.

The Navy designs San Antonio-class amphibious transport dock ships to embark, transport, and land elements of a landing force for various expeditionary warfare missions. These ships provide the Navy and Marine Corps with modern, sea-based platforms that are networked, survivable, and built to operate in the 21st century, with capabilities including the MV-22 Osprey, the upgraded Amphibious Assault Vehicle, and future means for delivering Marines ashore.

You can live-stream the ceremony at www.dvidshub.net/webcast/34486. The link will become active approximately ten minutes prior to the event at 10:50 a.m. CDT.

Direct media inquiries to the Navy Office of Information at (703) 697-5342. Visit https://www.navy.mil/Resources/Fact-Files/Display-FactFiles/Article/2222713/amphibious-transport-dock-lpd/ for more information on the Amphibious Transport Dock ship.

Source: United States Navy

Torri Huske, a two-time Olympian, kick-started Team USA’s quest for gold at the 2024 Paris Olympic Games by winning the 100-meter butterfly race on July 28, 2024. Torri, who narrowly missed out on the podium in the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games by a single one-hundredth of a second, edged out some of the world’s best swimmers and claimed her first gold medal in Paris.

“It was a surreal moment,” Torri said in a room full of Carderock employees and their children in West Bethesda, Maryland, on Aug. 26, 2024. “I feel like it’s one of those things where you’ve wanted it for so long; it’s not really a surprise, but you just can’t believe it finally happened.”

However, up in the stands of the Paris La Defense Arena, her mother – Ying – could barely watch.

“You always hope that your kid can perform to their potential,” Ying said. “But you are also worried and afraid that she would be disappointed or not happy because she didn’t meet her own expectations for some reason. At these games, Torri was not just representing herself; she was representing the United States. We were hoping that she could represent the country well and make Team USA shine. We were over the moon to see her perform so exceptionally well. She swam her heart out.”

Ying emigrated from China to the U.S. in search for a better future and new opportunities. As a first-generation migrant, she had to overcome a language barrier and financial difficulties until she finally found her niche in this country. She attended graduate school at Virginia Tech in Blacksburg, Virginia. After she graduated, she took a job in the Washington, D.C., area and settled in northern Virginia. In her spare time, and whenever she wanted to exercise, she went to the pool.

“I never swam competitively, but swimming has been a thing to keep me in shape,” Ying said. “I swam even when I was pregnant with Torri – up until two days before I gave birth.”

She was keen on having her daughter learn how to swim, although not competitively. Instead, Ying was focused on teaching Torri how to be comfortable with the water when she was a young kid so she could enjoy water sports and the ocean as she grew up.

“I always tried to take her to the pool when she was young to try to get her familiar with it,” she said. “I asked her quite a few times – when we were at the community pool – if she would like to take swimming classes and many times she said no; but eventually one day – when Torri was around 5 – she said yes.”

In that moment, a future Olympian was born. Ying enrolled her daughter in the Arlington Aquatic Center in Virginia, where Torri learned a variety of swimming strokes for the first time. Nowadays, she trains with her college coaches, but when she returns home to the Washington metropolitan area, she always goes back to the place where it all started.

“Every time summer or winter break occurs, she comes home and trains with AAC,” Ying said. “She’s been with them her whole life up until she moved to college.”

Torri is currently attending Stanford University in California. She took this past year off school to prepare for the Paris games and emerged from the iconic sporting competition with three gold medals and two silver medals. Now, she will return to school to finish her bachelor’s degree in product design.

“For me, I get goosebumps all over,” Ying said. “When I think about my daughter competing at this level – I am so happy. This country has openly accepted us and seeing Torri be able to represent the U.S. makes me feel so proud, it is just an incredible feeling all around.”

Ying shared the challenges Torri encountered as not only a student-athlete, but an Olympian too.

“In 2023, her course load was so heavy,” Ying said. “She was basically working and studying 50 hours a week, and that doesn’t include the 20 hours a week she had to commit to training. She was always tired, but she performed really well in school. Unfortunately, though, she did not do her best at the 2023 World Championship. It was a tough year. That was one of the reasons Torri took a year off from school leading to the Paris Olympic Games, so she could focus on training and resting. Her decision has paid off. Kids like Torri have to go through the rigorous academic courses and athletic training and that is a lot to balance. Luckily, Torri tells me her friends and teammates are driven and hardworking people, and that they inspire, motivate and lift her up. That’s why she thanks them so much in her interviews.”

While Torri was racing during the 100-meter butterfly race, her mother pointed something out that may have been missed.

“Torri has a huge determination to win,” Ying said. “After the Tokyo Games, she made it her personal goal to go for gold at the next games in Paris. I am not sure if anyone noticed this, but in the last five meters or so – usually when you do butterfly you take a breath per stroke, maybe one per two strokes. But Torri did not breathe for five strokes and that’s how she got her hand to the wall first.”

Both Torri and Ying thanked everyone at the Carderock Division for their overwhelming support.

“Even when I’m thousands of miles away, I can feel your support and your love and I really appreciate it,” Torri said to a full house of Carderock employees at the Raye Montague Center.

Ying added, “After I arrived back at work, I was surprised to hear that so many of you had been watching her and cheering her on. Your support and positive energy helped make a difference. I received so many congratulatory emails with kind words regarding her success. I cannot tell you how much each of these have meant to my family and me. I especially want to thank the leadership and my coworkers here at Carderock and at Naval Sea Systems Command for all their support throughout the years of this journey. As they say, ‘It takes a village.’ Torri would not have had the success she has had without your support. I am proud to be a part of the Navy team, NAVSEA and Carderock and even more proud to be an American.”

Since the Paris Games concluded last month, Torri has become a swimming icon and inspiration. She departed the states as an Olympic hopeful, but returned as a local and national hero. The next summer Olympic Games will be held in Los Angeles in 2028. Torri will be aiming to compete on home turf with the support of a roaring nation behind her.