SEAL BEACH : Naval Station Gets New Commander

The Seal Beach Naval Weapons Station received a new commanding officer Wednesday when Capt. John C. Devlin was officially sworn in during a ceremony at the base’s Anaheim Bay pier.

Devlin relieves Capt. W. Robert Hampe, who had served as commander of the weapons station since 1991.

Devlin, 43, a 20-year career officer, has served aboard several vessels and was commander of the Preserver in the mid-1980s. In 1989 he became commander of the Naval Magazine on Guam. He had served as executive officer at a naval weapons facility in Goose Creek, S.C., since 1991.

Devlin has been awarded the Meritorious Service Medal and the Navy Achievement Medal.

As the new Seal Beach commander, he is sure to play a key role in the proposed realignment of the base. Under a plan by the Defense Base Closure and Realignment Commission, the weapons station would stop testing some missiles before they are loaded onto ships.

The 5,000-acre base provides ammunition and other supplies to more than half of the Pacific Fleet. The facility, which stretches from the mouth of Anaheim Bay to the San Diego Freeway, includes base housing and a national wildlife refuge.