Coast Guard in Iowa? Really?

With the deployment of Auxilarists near the Red River we have received a lot of inquires about the Coast Guard Auxiliary. Most of them center on the fact that most people do not know that their is, in fact, a Coast Guard presence in Central Iowa.

First, the Coast Guard Auxiliary is the uniformed volunteer component of the United States Coast Guard. Created by an Act of Congress in 1939, the Auxiliary directly supports the Coast Guard in all missions, except military and law enforcement actions.

We conduct safety patrols on local lakes and waterways, assist the Coast Guard with homeland security duties, teach boating safety classes, conduct free vessel safety checks for the public, as well as many other activities (including augmenting them during emergencies like the flooding up on the Red River).

Many Auxilarists choose to receive training from the Coast Guard and other agencies to be qualified to respond to an emergency similar to your local fire department. Our mission is different, but our volunteer lifesavers go through hours of classroom training and field experience before they are able to go out and help during an emergency. These professional volunteers have skills and capabilities from as simple as answering phones at a desk to relaying information from a Coast Guard helicopter back to a command post miles and miles away.

Even though the active duty Coast Guard facilities are located on the Mississippi River and Missouri River, we Auxilarists have a vital mission here in Central Iowa. We are here to help further the Coast Guard safety missions to promote safe boating. Whether it is teaching a class, doing a free vessel safety check for your boat, or patroling the lakes and waterways to ensure your safety we are furthering this mission. By doing this it allows the active duty Coast Guard to focus their energies on missions elsewhere.

So yes, there is a Coast Guard presence in Central Iowa and we are your Iowa Volunteer Lifesavers!