The Coast Guard
Auxiliary Ninth District, Central Region,
Division Eight, Flotilla 8-4,
has an area of responsibility (AOR)
encompassing the Twin Ports from Duluth, MN & Superior, WI,
along the North Shore of Lake Superior to Grand Marais, MN.
This area of operation (AOR) includes cities surrounding the Twin Ports along
with Two Harbors, Silver Bay, and the many other smaller communities
along the North Shore of Lake Superior extending to the
border with Canada.
Twin Ports Flotilla 8-4 members routinely offer
public safety classes, perform FREE courtesy
vessel safety checks (VSCs), visit marine
dealers & recreational programs, perform surface operations
including safety patrols, support active duty personnel where
needed, and other missions as directed by the
Commandant of the U.S. Coast Guard.
ABOUT
THE COAST GUARD
The Coast Guard
is an armed maritime service with military,
law enforcement, marine environmental
protection, preventative safety and
search-and-rescue (SAR) missions.
Formed as the
Revenue Cutter Service in 1790 by Alexander
Hamilton to collect taxes and deter piracy,
the Coast Guard is the oldest armed,
uniformed service in continual operation
since 1790. In 1915, the federal
lighthouse and lifesaving services were
merged with the Revenue Cutter Service and
renamed the Coast Guard. The Coast Guard
was nominally under the administration of the
Department of the Treasury (except during
times of war, when it was under the Navy
Department) until the 1960s, when it was
transferred to the authority of the
Department of Transportation. In March, 2003,
the Coast Guard was transferred to the
Department of Homeland Security.
ABOUT
THE COAST GUARD AUXILIARY
Formed
in 1939 as the Coast Guard Reserve, the Coast
Guard Auxiliary was given its present name. The
outbreak of World War II
necessitated the formation of a military
reserve and the original reserve was renamed the auxiliary. The Auxiliary is comprised of some
36,000 uniformed, civilian volunteers —
veterans, professionals and spirited citizens
— who serve side-by-side with active and
reserve duty personnel, assisting the Coast
Guard in every mission area except direct
military action and law enforcement, and as
directed by the Commandant of the Coast
Guard. In an average day, Auxiliarists save
one life, assist 56 people in distress, save
$719,000 in property, educate 936 people
about boating safety, perform 615 VSCs,
conduct 19 SAR missions, complete 100 safety
patrols afloat, and participate in 120
operational support missions for the Coast
Guard. Dubbed “America’s Volunteer
Lifesavers,” they comprise about
one-third of the Coast Guard's total
manpower.
