Sailors and Coast Guardsmen participate in Damage Control Olympics for Fleet Week Port Everglades

 FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. (May 5, 2015) Sailors battle a fire during the Damage Control Olympics hosted by Resolve Maritime. Sailors, Marines and Coast Guardsmen from five ships are participating in the 25th annual Fleet Week Port Everglades, a weeklong celebration and collaboration with the community of South Florida. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Justin Wolpert/Released)

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. - Sailors and Coast Guardsmen showed off their damage control (DC) skills and prowess with a bit of friendly competition at the Damage Control Olympics, an event held as part of Fleet Week Port Everglades May 5.

Teams from amphibious assault ship USS Wasp (LHD 1), Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyers USS Cole (DDG 67) and USS James E. Williams (DDG 95), Virginia class nuclear-powered attack sub USS New Hampshire (SSN 778) and Sentinel-class cutter USCGC Richard Etheridge (WPC 1102) participated in the timed, multifaceted, relay-based race.

The DC Olympics, held at the Resolve Marine Training Facility, is an annual tradition at Fleet Week Port Everglades and includes DC-centric events such as the P-100 pump firefighting drill, a self-contained breathing apparatus (SCBA) dress out drill, pipe patching and shoring drills, and search and rescue drills.

“It’s all about building camaraderie,” said Tom Jones, formerly a Damage Controlman 2nd Class in the U.S. Navy, who is the training manager for Resolve Marine Training Facility. “Sharing damage control tactics with other Sailors and Coast Guardsmen makes us more efficient at what we do.”

Senior Chief Damage Controlman Michael Hutson, who was attending his fourth competition, emphasized the importance of the event.

“Over the years, despite many different Sailors, the team building and unity we can achieve always amazes me,” said Hutson. “Events like these make us stronger as a whole.”

The event was one of many scheduled during Fleet Week Port Everglades to highlight the diversity of the military and provide an opportunity for ships’ Sailors and Marines to interact with one another.

Sailors, Marines and Coast Guardsmen from five ships are participating in the 25th annual Fleet Week Port Everglades, a weeklong celebration and collaboration with the community of South Florida. The series of events and ship tours provide the citizens of South Florida an opportunity to meet Sailors and Marines, as well as witness first-hand the latest capabilities of today's maritime services, to gain a better understanding of how the sea services support the maritime strategy and national defense of the U.S.

For more information, visit https://www.facebook.com/FleetWeekPortEverglades or www.twitter.com/@FleetWeekPEV.