The USCGC Roanoke Island is the 46th Island class cutter to be commissioned.[1] She was commissioned in Homer, Alaska, on February 7, 1992, joining five other Island Class cutters based in Alaska at that time.[2] Her primary missions include "search and rescue, fisheries enforcement & homeland security."[3]
In 2010, the Roanoke rescued a fishing vessel called Wahoo when it became disabled during bad weather near Pearl Island.[4]
On October 25, 2012, following a 135-day refit in a drydock in Ketchikan, Coast Guard Alaska explained the refit would allow the vessel to remain service until she was replaced by a new Sentinel class cutter.[5] Nevertheless, the Homer News reported that the Roanoke would leave Homer by the end of June, 2015, for her decommissioning in Baltimore, Maryland.[6][7] A sister ship, the Sapelo, previously stationed in San Juan, Puerto Rico, will replace her. The Sapelo will be freed up as the Island-class cutters in San Juan are replaced by new Sentinel class cutters.
Decommissioning
On June 4, 2015, Roanoke Island was decommissioned at a ceremony held in homeport of Homer, Alaska. The ship was then transferred to the Coast Guard Yard in Baltimore, Maryland for disposal.[8]
^"USCGC Roanoke Island (WPB 346) Unit History". Military.com. Archived from the original on 2015-06-05. USCGC Roanoke Island (WPB 1346) was the 46th Island Class cutter to join the Coast Guard fleet and is named after and island located on the Outer Banks of North Carolina between Pamlico Sound and Albemarle Sound.
^"Helgen to Take the Helm of Coast Guard Cutter Roanoke Island". Coast Guard News. 2008-06-09. Archived from the original on 2010-02-05. Retrieved 2015-06-04. Roanoke Island is named for an island off the coast of North Carolina. There are five additional 110-foot Island Class patrol boats based in Alaska: the Anacapa in Petersburg, the Liberty in Juneau, the Mustang in Seward, the Long Island in Valdez and the Naushon in Ketchikan.
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David Mosely (2012-10-25). "Cutter crew maintains operational readiness". Coast Guard Alaska. Retrieved 2015-06-05. The 110-foot Island-class patrol boat, homeported in Homer, Alaska, just completed a major, 135-day long, maintenance overhaul at the Coast Guard dry dock in Ketchikan. This overhaul updated the ships systems to ensure it can continue to meet its mission requirements until its scheduled replacement by one of the Coast Guard's new fast response cutters.
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Michael Armstrong (2015-06-04). "Coast Guard cutter forced into retirement". Homer News. Archived from the original on 2015-06-05. Homer won't lose the 18 crewmembers and their families, however. An Island Class patrol boat, the 110-foot Roanoke Island will be replaced in Homer by a sister ship, the U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Sapelo, now stationed in Sector San Juan, Puerto Rico.
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Michael Armstrong (2015-06-10). "Coast Guard cutter forced into retirement". Homer, Alaska: Juneau Empire. Archived from the original on 2015-06-12. After 23 years of service, the U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Roanoke Island ends its tour of duty. Sometime soon it will sail away to be decommissioned at the Coast Guard Yard, Baltimore, Md. A farewell ceremony was Thursday at the Homer Elks Lodge.
