Grand Cayman, 23 December 2021 (GIS)- Members of the National Security Council (NSC) got an inside look at the work of the Cayman Islands Coast Guard (CICG), during a tour of the organisation’s compound last week.

Commander Robert Scotland, who hosted the group, provided the NSC with a briefing of how the CICG is structured. Commander Scotland outlined the work of the various operational detachment. He also spoke about current maritime risks facing the Islands, especially those resulting from rapid growth of commercial and recreational marine activity, as well as plans for training and resource development in 2021.

The Commander also shared with the visitors that from January to November of this year the Coast Guard had assisted 25 vessels in distress, recovered more than 3000 pounds of ganja, and conducted more than 200 checks of our Wildlife Interaction Zone (WIZ), among other achievements.

Deputy Commander Leo Anglin also took council members out on the water on the 44 ft. special purpose vessel, Protector II. The craft has a multi-mission role that includes search-and-rescue as well as the detection and disruption of illicit maritime activity.

The National Security Council is a constitutional body that provides direction on matters of national security to His Excellency The Governor. Membership consists of the Governor, the Premier, Cabinet Ministers and the Leader of the Opposition, as well as the private sector.

The Cayman Islands Coast Guard, whose mission is “saving lives, protecting borders”, was established in 2018 to ensure the safety and security of commercial and recreational activity in Cayman Islands waters.

Premier, Hon. Wayne Panton, in whose Ministry the Coast Guard resides, said: “It makes me very proud to see this new agency coming into its own. Its work is integral to the present and future safety of our community which is dependent on the sea for so much. At the same time the Coast Guard themselves enshrines one of our oldest and most embedded national traditions; a love of the sea.”