The
Coast Guard Cutter Moray, an 87′ patrol boat, docks at the Yard March
17, 2015, for an anticipated three-month emergency repair. (USCG photo
by CWO Kristopher McGhee, Yard)
BOSTON, MASS.
The Coast Guard on Friday permanently relieved Senior Chief Petty Officer Christopher Bouchard as the officer in charge of the Coast Guard Cutter Moray, homeported in Jonesport, Maine.
Rear Adm. William G. Kelly, from Coast Guard Personnel Command, Washington, D.C., officially relieved Bouchard, who was in command when the Moray ran aground Feb. 20 near the Petit Manan Bar, southwest of Jonesport.
Bouchard is now temporarily assigned to the sector field office in Southwest Harbor, Maine, with no further disciplinary actions expected.
A new officer-in-charge selection is pending while Moray is undergoing repairs at the Coast Guard Yard in Baltimore, Maryland. Repairs are expected to be complete mid-June and a new officer in charge will be assigned.
It is rare for an officer in charge to be relieved of his or her post, and is always a carefully evaluated decision. While the service has high expectations for all of its members, the Coast Guard holds commanding officers and officers in charge to the highest standards.
//--------------///
The officer in charge of a Maine-based Coast Guard cutter was
permanently relieved of his duties Tuesday, according to a Coast Guard
release, reaching a final decision on discipline for the OIC three
months after the cutter ran aground.
Senior Chief Boatswain's Mate
Christopher Bouchard was permanently relieved from command of the
cutter Moray following an investigation into the ship's grounding in
February, a First Coast Guard District spokeswoman confirmed.
The
87-foot coastal patrol boat, based in Maine, ran aground when it hit
shallow water February 20 during a transit off Petit Manan Bar in Maine,
Public Affairs Specialist 2nd Class Linola Stone told Navy Times.
Bouchard had been in command of Moray for almost two years, she added.
First
Coast Guard District commander Rear Adm. Linda Fagan and Sector
Northern New England commander Capt. Brian Gilda temporarily relieved
Bouchard on March 7 for loss of confidence.
The
decision then went to Commandant Adm. Paul Zukunft, who authorized the
head of Coast Guard Personnel Command to permanently relieve Bouchard.
"A
new officer-in-charge selection is pending while Moray is undergoing
repairs at the Coast Guard Yard in Baltimore, Maryland," the release
said. "Repairs are expected to be complete mid-June and a new officer in
charge will be assigned."
No further disciplinary action
is expected, the release said. Bouchard is temporarily assigned to the
Northern New England field office in Southwestern Harbor, Maine.
Source: Navytimes.com