Nathanael English

Damage controlman are trained in and hold many responsibilities. Carpentry, Plumbing, Firefighting, Welding, Maintenance, and Training are all regular aspects of a damage controlman's day to day.

During my time at USCG Base Boston we conducted maintenance and repairs on the buildings and grounds of the Base and outlying units. This included roofing, drywall, framing, plumbing, painting, snow removal, carpentry, snow removal, and heavy equipment operation. On snow removal operations I was designated snow team leader which engaged me in coordinating and managing up to 12+ personnel in maintaining safe removal of snow in heavy conditions. As a part of the facilities team I was entrusted with duty phone recall periods where should some essential base machinery fail I am the response deepening understanding of boiler and HVAC systems.

Onboard USCGC Lawrence Lawson I was independently responsible for up keeping my own maintenance program, making repairs to the ships structural and watertight fittings, maintaining all onboard firefighting equipment and casualty response equipment. While underway I was trained and qualified to stand engine room watch monitoring essential diesel engines, hydraulics, air conditioning, power distribution, diesel generators, and refrigeration systems. Onboard any vessel the crew must be properly trained in emergency response scenarios and as the sole damage controlman on board it was my responsibility to ensure proper group and one on one trainings were conducted and all members onboard were capable of responding to a casualty.