A Coast Guard C-130, based out of Air Station Elizabeth City, N.C., flies past an iceberg in the waters near Newfoundland, Canada. U.S. Coast Guard photo by Petty Officer 1st Class Brandon Brewer.
1. When was the International Ice Patrol formed?
Shipping areas in the North Atlantic have always been hazardous to navigate. The hazards of the North Atlantic captured global attention in April 1912 when the RMS Titanic sank after it struck an iceberg. The incident prompted maritime nations with ships transiting the Grand Banks off Newfoundland, Canada, to establish an iceberg patrol in the area. Since 1913, the U.S. Coast Guard has been tasked with the management and operation of the patrol. Except for the years of World Wars I and II, the ice patrol has been active each ice season since its inception.
2. What are the specific duties of the ice patrol?
Their mission is to monitor the iceberg danger near the Grand Banks of Newfoundland and provide the iceberg limit to the maritime community, including ice and current conditions.
Written by the International Ice Patrol.
Icebergs, bergy bits or growlers. Whatever you call them, these massive chunks of ice – some the size of a small country – all pose a threat for ships transiting the North Atlantic. But thanks to the U.S. Coast Guard’s International Ice Patrol and their partners, mariners will have the information they need to stay safe, and out of harm’s way.
A Coast Guard airplane flies over an iceberg during a reconnaissance flight. (U.S. Coast Guard photo)
The U.S. Coast Guard’s International Ice Patrol took over the ice-reporting responsibility from the Canadian Ice Service on Wednesday, officially marking the start of the 2012 ice season. The Ice Patrol is now responsible for issuing daily iceberg analysis products, which provides key safety information for mariners transiting in Atlantic waters.
Prior to 2011, the Canadian Ice Service published a daily iceberg analysis for Canadian coastal waters and the International Ice Patrol published a seasonal daily iceberg warning when icebergs threatened transatlantic shipping lanes. Last year, the services combined efforts to produce one daily iceberg analysis to be issued by Ice Patrol during their traditional season – February through July – and to be issued by the Canadian Ice Service for the remainder of the year.