USCGC ''Vigorous'' (WMEC-627) is a

United States Coast Guard The United States Coast Guard (USCG) is the maritime security, search and rescue, and Admiralty law, law enforcement military branch, service branch of the armed forces of the United States. It is one of the country's eight Uniformed services ...

Reliance Class

medium endurance cutter The Medium Endurance Cutter or WMEC is a type of United States Coast Guard Cutter mainly consisting of the Famous- and ''Reliance''-class cutters. These larger cutters are under control of Area Commands (Atlantic Area or Pacific Area). These cut ...

Service summary

Her keel was laid down by

American Ship Building Company The American Ship Building Company was the dominant shipbuilder on the Great Lakes before the Second World War. It started as Cleveland Shipbuilding in Cleveland, Ohio, in 1888 and opened the yard in Lorain, Ohio, in 1898. It changed its name t ...

Lorain, Ohio Lorain () is a city in Lorain County, Ohio, United States. It is located in Northeast Ohio on Lake Erie, at the mouth of the Black River (Ohio), Black River about west of Cleveland. It is the List of cities in Ohio, ninth-most populous city in O ...

10 November 1967 and she was launched 4 May 1968. ''Vigorous'' was commissioned 2 May 1969 and her current homeport is

Virginia Beach, VA Virginia Beach (colloquially VB) is the most populous city in the U.S. commonwealth of Virginia. The city is located on the Atlantic Ocean at the mouth of the Chesapeake Bay in southeastern Virginia. It is the sixth-most populous city in the ...

. Her initial homeport was in

New London, Connecticut New London is a seaport city and a port of entry on the northeast coast of the United States, located at the outlet of the Thames River (Connecticut), Thames River in New London County, Connecticut, which empties into Long Island Sound. The cit ...

where she was moored at the

United States Coast Guard Academy The United States Coast Guard Academy (USCGA), located in New London, Connecticut, is the United States service academies, U.S. service academy specifically for the United States Coast Guard. Founded in 1876, the academy provides education t ...

. She was decommissioned for modernization at the

United States Coast Guard Yard The United States Coast Guard Yard or just Coast Guard Yard is a United States Coast Guard operated shipyard located on Curtis Bay in northern Anne Arundel County, Maryland, just south of the Baltimore city limits. It is the Department of Homela ...

in Curtis Bay,

Maryland Maryland ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It borders the states of Virginia to its south, West Virginia to its west, Pennsylvania to its north, and Delaware to its east ...

, in early 1992 and was recommissioned on 11 January 1993. During the 2010 Caribbean Games in Mayaguez,

Puerto Rico ; abbreviated PR), officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, is a Government of Puerto Rico, self-governing Caribbean Geography of Puerto Rico, archipelago and island organized as an Territories of the United States, unincorporated territo ...

, the ''Vigorous'' maintained a security zone in Mayaguez harbor. On 11 February 2013, the ''Vigorous'' stood by the disabled 102,000-ton cruise ship ''

Carnival Triumph ''Carnival Sunrise'' (formerly ''Carnival Triumph'') is a operated by Carnival Cruise Line. As she and her three younger sisters (, , and ) are each a redesigned version of the Carnival Sunshine, lead ship in the class, she is sometimes referre ...

'' adrift in the

Gulf of Mexico The Gulf of Mexico () is an oceanic basin and a marginal sea of the Atlantic Ocean, mostly surrounded by the North American continent. It is bounded on the northeast, north, and northwest by the Gulf Coast of the United States; on the southw ...

waiting to be towed. On Sunday, 10 February 2013 at 5:30 a.m. CST, the ''Carnival Triumph'' suffered a fire in her aft

engine room On a ship, the engine room (ER) is the Compartment (ship), compartment where the machinery for marine propulsion is located. The engine room is generally the largest physical compartment of the machinery space. It houses the vessel's prime move ...

. Although the fire was automatically extinguished and there were no injuries to passengers or crew, it resulted in a loss of

propulsion Propulsion is the generation of force by any combination of pushing or pulling to modify the translational motion of an object, which is typically a rigid body (or an articulated rigid body) but may also concern a fluid. The term is derived from ...

and power to all support systems. With 4,229 persons on board, raw sewage began to back up into the lower passenger deck areas. This caused the media to dub the event "The Poop Cruise." A Coast Guard supplied emergency generator was providing minimal electrical power, while the ship was adrift about 150 miles off the northern coast of the

Yucatán Peninsula The Yucatán Peninsula ( , ; ) is a large peninsula in southeast Mexico and adjacent portions of Belize and Guatemala. The peninsula extends towards the northeast, separating the Gulf of Mexico to the north and west of the peninsula from the C ...

in the

. The ship was originally expected to be towed to the Mexican port of Progreso. However, after being carried north by currents while awaiting arrival of large, seagoing

tugboat A tugboat or tug is a marine vessel that manoeuvres other vessels by pushing or pulling them, with direct contact or a tow line. These boats typically tug ships in circumstances where they cannot or should not move under their own power, suc ...

s, she was towed to

Mobile, Alabama Mobile ( , ) is a city and the county seat of Mobile County, Alabama, United States. The population was 187,041 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. After a successful vote to annex areas west of the city limits in July 2023, Mobil ...

instead. ''Vigorous'' escorted ''Carnival Triumph'' during her tow. During May 2014, the ''Vigorous'' was spearheading the search for the

Yacht A yacht () is a sail- or marine propulsion, motor-propelled watercraft made for pleasure, cruising, or racing. There is no standard definition, though the term generally applies to vessels with a cabin intended for overnight use. To be termed a ...

Cheeki Rafiki ''Cheeki Rafiki'' was a Bénéteau First 40.7 sailboat, sailing yacht. The yacht lost her keel in the Atlantic Ocean about southeast of Nova Scotia, Canada, and subsequently capsized. Rescue services found her upturned hull before it sank but th ...

'' one thousand miles east of

Cape Cod Cape Cod is a peninsula extending into the Atlantic Ocean from the southeastern corner of Massachusetts, in the northeastern United States. Its historic, maritime character and ample beaches attract heavy tourism during the summer months. The ...

, which went missing on a delivery voyage from

Antigua Antigua ( ; ), also known as Waladli or Wadadli by the local population, is an island in the Lesser Antilles. It is one of the Leeward Islands in the Caribbean region and the most populous island of the country of Antigua and Barbuda. Antigua ...

Southampton Southampton is a port City status in the United Kingdom, city and unitary authority in Hampshire, England. It is located approximately southwest of London, west of Portsmouth, and southeast of Salisbury. Southampton had a population of 253, ...

, England. The overturned hull of the capsized ''Cheeki Rafiki'' was found on the evening of 23 May 2014 with the

keel The keel is the bottom-most longitudinal structural element of a watercraft, important for stability. On some sailboats, it may have a fluid dynamics, hydrodynamic and counterbalancing purpose as well. The keel laying, laying of the keel is often ...

broken off and the uninflated life raft inside the hull. All four sailors on board were presumed lost at sea.

Awards

While in service, ''Vigorous'' has been awarded: *Coast Guard Presidential Unit Citation *United States Secretary of Transportation's Gold Medal for Outstanding Achievement *4

Coast Guard Unit Commendation The Coast Guard Unit Commendation is the highest peacetime unit award that may be awarded to military commands of the United States Coast Guard. The decoration was first created in 1963 and is presented to members of any Coast Guard unit that di ...

s *6 Coast Guard

Meritorious Unit Commendation The Meritorious Unit Commendation (MUC; pronounced ''muck'') is a mid-level unit award of the United States Armed Forces. The U.S. Army awards units the Army MUC for exceptionally meritorious conduct in performance of outstanding achievement or ...

s *

Meritorious Team Commendation The Meritorious Team Commendation (MTC) is a unit award of the United States Coast Guard. Created on 22 December 1993, the Meritorious Team Commendation is awarded for performance of exceptional actions that would normally warrant a Commandant's ...

* Coast Guard Bicentennial Unit Commendation *15 Coast Guard "E" Ribbons *3

National Defense Service Medal The National Defense Service Medal (NDSM) is a service award of the United States Armed Forces established by President Dwight D. Eisenhower in 1953. It was awarded to every member of the U.S. Armed Forces who served during any one of four s ...

s *

Global War on Terrorism Service Medal The Global War on Terrorism Service Medal (GWOT-SM) is a military award of the United States Armed Forces which was created through Executive Order 13289 on 12 March 2003, by President George W. Bush. The medal recognizes those military service ...

Humanitarian Service Medal The Humanitarian Service Medal (HSM) is a military service medal of the United States Armed Forces which was created on January 19, 1977 by President Gerald Ford under . The medal may be awarded to members of the United States military (incl ...

s *Department of Transportation 9-11 Ribbon *2 Coast Guard Special Operations Service Ribbons *13 Coast Guard

Sea Service Ribbon A Sea Service Ribbon is an award of the United States Navy, U.S. Marine Corps, U.S. Coast Guard, the U.S. Army, and the NOAA Commissioned Officer Corps which recognizes those service members who have performed military duty while stationed on a Un ...

References

External links

USCGC ''Vigorous'' home page
* CGC Vigorous monitors cruise ship Carnival Triumph

{{DEFAULTSORT:Vigorous Historic American Engineering Record in Virginia Reliance-class cutters Ships of the United States Coast Guard 1968 ships Ships built in Lorain, Ohio