Coast Guard to Monitor Ships at Ports for Millennium Readiness

Trying to defuse concerns that shipping might be halted due to year 2000 computer failures, the U.S. Coast Guard on Tuesday announced plans to keep the nation’s ports open during the dawn of the new millennium.

Rather than institute widespread harbor closures, Coast Guard officials said they will assess the safety and reliability of individual cargo ships, fishing vessels and passenger liners entering and leaving domestic ports around New Year’s Day 2000.

Under the plan, vessels that have not adequately addressed the so-called millennium bug could be barred from port or restricted to their docks or moorings until the problems are solved.

Just as critical, Coast Guard officials said they have taken steps to ensure the dependability of computer-assisted vessel tracking systems--the harbor equivalent of air traffic control.

“Our plans are to have all ports remain open on Jan. 1,” said Rear Adm. George N. Nacarra during a news conference at the Port of Los Angeles. “There may be some circumstances where ships will not be allowed in or out of port.”

Nacarra, who is the Coast Guard’s chief of information and technology, said there has been recent concern that some foreign ports and some cargo terminals in the United States might close down for the arrival of 2000.

The Coast Guard’s Y2K plan was developed over the last two years with input from more than 150 leaders in the maritime industry.

Officials released details of the program after two days of drills involving the ports of Long Beach and Los Angeles, as well as Arco; Crowley Marine Services, a local tug company; and APL Ltd., an Oakland-based shipping line.

Among other things, the drills simulated an oil spill, the failure of engine room communications aboard a giant container ship, and the loss of all power at the radar-equipped vessel tracking service on the Palos Verdes Peninsula.

Test results showed that manual systems such as voice-activated telephones, back-up power generators and even hand-held radios could be used to overcome the problems.

Nacarra said the procedures developed and tried in the county’s ports will be implemented nationally as the new year approaches.

Coast Guard officials say inspections and risk assessments of arriving and departing vessels are key parts of the program.

Ships facing bad weather or loaded with hazardous cargo will be candidates for corrective action, Nacarra said, if their owners have not addressed potential Y2K problems. Inspectors will be paying particular attention to vessels with histories of safety deficiencies.

“We want to keep our ports safe, efficient and environmentally sound,” said Capt. George Wright, who is in charge of Coast Guard operations in the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach.

Port authorities did not say how many ships might have to be scrutinized for Y2K compliance. On average, there are about 30 arrivals and departures of ships a day at the L.A. and Long Beach ports.

Responding to recent U.S. Senate concerns that the maritime industry has not thoroughly addressed potential Y2K problems, Nacarra said there has been significant improvement lately among shipping lines, ports and terminal operators.