HONOLULU -- 599th Transportation Brigade personnel monitored discharge of Marine Corps cargo and equipment from the Young Brothers’ barge Kala Enalu at Honolulu Harbor on May 2.
Young Brothers’ longshoremen at Piers 39 and 40 discharged equipment coming from a two-month deployment to Pohakuloa Training Area on Hawaii island.
Marines had deployed infantry, artillery and a logistical battalion to train at PTA, said 599th traffic management specialist Jimmy Quilon.
Quilon was the contracting officer representative for the move.
“I was at the offload for contract management and quality assurance,” said Quilon. “I had to ensure all of the ordered actions were followed and act as the liaison between Young Brothers and OCCA or the Marines in case there were problems with the contract from either side.”
Unlike most port operations, 599th personnel were not allowed on the vessel during the move, which provided challenges to supporting the mission.
Young Brothers representative Shannon Lee said all observers had to stay about 75 yards away from the offload as a safety precaution. Only Marines who were needed to hook up artillery pieces to trucks were allowed on the barge during the offload, and Marines who were responsible for staging and onward movement were the only military personnel allowed in the holding yard after the offload.
Marine cargo specialist Staff Sgt. Deontre Austin was in charge of the terminal operations team at the port.
“My job was to submit a situation report,” Austin said. "We had to count the pieces coming off of the barge, make an initial situation report, and find out when the port would be cleared. It was scheduled to be cleared by May 5."
Marine cargo specialists Sgts. Kathryne Mason and Jason Hickenlooper completed the terminal operations team for the move.
“Sgts. Mason and Hickenlooper were a great help on the count,” Austin said.
The restriction of 75 yards between the offload challenged the team; however, communication and coordination with the shipper was key to a successful operation.
599th safety officer, Greg “Safety” Ferst, was on hand to ensure the movement was safe.
“I noticed a few minor safety infractions with both Young Brothers and the Marines,” Ferst said.
“During a normal operation where our personnel were involved, I would have spoken with the Marines’ supervisors and the contractors, and noted any violations or items for improvement on an after-action report,” he added.
The offload began at 8:06 a.m., and the last item came off at 10:09 a.m.
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