New Interagency Operations Center opens on Yerba Buena Island

SAN FRANCISCO – A new interagency operations center for maritime operations in the San Francisco Bay area officially opened today during a ceremony at the U.S. Coast Guard's Yerba Buena Island base.

Rep. Nancy Pelosi gave the keynote address at the event attended by dozens of federal, state and local agency representatives along with other members of the maritime industry.

“The IOC will allow a coordinated response to emergencies that impact our nation’s waterways, and, as a result, the American people,” said Pelosi. “The Coast Guard’s motto is ‘Semper Paratus,’ or ‘Always Ready;’ the IOC will help ensure that we are always ready to plan and to respond in order to keep the American people safe.”

The new center represents a strategic initiative mandated by the SAFE Port Act. The facility serves to better plan, coordinate, and execute operations requiring multiple-agencies by directing operations from a central base while using interoperable communications.

"This Interagency Operations Center – IOC for short – allows us to bring together federal, state and local stakeholders to improve information sharing and tactical coordination.," said Vice Adm. Manson K. Brown, commander of the Coast Guard's Pacific Area and Coast Guard Defense Force West and event presiding official. "Through its embedded systems and its collaborative layout, the IOC allows us to respond to maritime crises and deter threats within this critical port area."

The event also marked the acceptance of the Coast Guard's new Rescue 21 communications system, which was incorporated into the new command center at Sector San Francisco. Rescue 21 was created to better locate mariners in distress and save lives and property at sea.

"Yerba Buena Island is in the heart of the San Francisco Bay, and the new command center is the heart of ports, waterways safety and security in this area," said Rear Adm. Joseph "Pepe" Castillo, commander of the 11th Coast Guard District. "The mariners, boaters, and citizens of this area deserve the best possible services we can provide and this center helps us do just that. It brings together highly skilled people from the Coast Guard and other agencies in a flexible, state-of-the-art facility custom made for coordinating all types of essential field operations from regular day-to-day patrols to responses to major emergencies," he said.

VIDEO RELEASE

SAN FRANCISCO -- Rep. Nancy Pelosi, Democratic House Leader, tours Sector San Francisco's new interagency operations center and Vessel Traffic Service, Tuesday, June 28, 2011. The IOC facility serves as a central base for multiple agency response to better plan, coordinate, and execute operations while using interoperable communications. U.S. Coast Guard video by Petty Officer 2nd Class Levi Read.