Appendix C Letter from the U.S. Coast Guard
9494
11/19/97
National Academy of Sciences
2101 Constitution Avenue N.W. Washington D.C. 20418-0001
Att: Dr. William A. Sprigg
Dr. Sprigg:
Thank you for inviting the Coast Guard to participate in the Essential Meteorological Buoy and CMAN Systems Data and Information Gathering Session.
As discussed at the session the C-MAN and Meteorological Data Buoys system is a very important tool used by the Coast Guard for search and rescue planning and response. The Coast Guard receives approximately 50,000 requests for assistance a year, 95% of these occurring between shore and 50 NM offshore, with a total of 4,992 lives saved and $ 2213.8 million property loss prevented in FY 96. Weather data from the C-MAN and meteorological Data Buoys are very important in determining the correct Coast Guard resources to dispatch, particularly our surface vessels. The data is critical in forecasting on scene weather, which is used to formulate search plans, optimizing search effectiveness through complex leeway and drift calculations. Increasing the number of C-MAN and Meteorological Data Buoys would help the Coast Guard meet its goal of 90% lives and 70% property saved at sea.
