Oil Patch Bits:Crowley’s Alert Tugboat recognized for emergency tow

Crowley said June 18 that the captain and crew of its prevention and response tug Alert were personally recognized by Rep. Eric Feige from the Alaska State Legislature for courage, teamwork and professionalism during the emergency rescue tow of the drill barge Kulluk off the southern point of Kodiak Island.

During their meeting, he presented them with a letter of commendation from the members of the 28th Alaska State Legislature, which stated the following: “The crew safely and methodically adapted to changing conditions, used their training to identify and manage hazards, and then performed each task to minimize the risks associated with those hazards. ... We express our admiration and respect to each man individually, and to the crew for its superb teamwork, conducting themselves at all times as professional mariners in an extreme and challenging incident.”

Following the formal recognition of the crew by Rep. Feige, he along with Mayor Dave Cobb from the City of Valdez, spent two hours touring the Alert and individually congratulating each member of the crew including: Captain Rod Layton, Brad Burger, Brett Spellman, James Mueller, Craig Matthews, Leroy Edenshawn and Walt Nickerson.

“This was a fine tribute to what we value — our people, operational excellence and innovation,” said Charlie Nalen, Crowley’s vice president of Valdez Operations.