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OC Family Grateful Editor: Saturday, April 25, 2009 was a beautiful day, and it was made even more wonderful by the outpouring of affection expressed toward Captain Robert S. Craig at his Beach Memorial Service. The Craig children and family appreciate all that was done to honor our “Pop,” a man so many in Ocean City have known and loved for so many years. The Beach Memorial was truly memorable and more special than we could have possibly imagined. We have many people to thank for their efforts in making it happen. We learned very quickly that organizing such an...

(At right) Flanked by friends and family members, a wreath is carried down the beach to be released into the ocean in memory of Craig, "founding father" of the Beach Patrol. Carrying the wreath is the current head of the organization, Capt. Butch Arbin, who is flanked by Craig's son, Robert Craig, and grandson, Christopher Craig. (Above) Sean Williams pushes a surf board, carrying the wreath and the ashes of Capt. Craig, toward a Coast Guard boat, which released the wreath farther from the shore.

MOMBASA, Kenya - An American ship captain was freed unharmed Sunday in a swift firefight that killed three of the four Somali pirates who had been holding him for days in a lifeboat off the coast of Africa, the ship's owner said.

News Release: April 8, 2009 Memorial Service planned to honor Captain Robert S. Craig Ocean City, MD – A memorial service for Captain Robert (Bob) S. Craig will be held 3 p.m. Saturday, April 25 on the beach at North Division Street. Captain Craig passed away on Saturday, March 28 at the age of 90. Captain Craig joined the Ocean City Beach Patrol in 1935 and served as its captain from 1946 until retiring in 1987. Captain Craig is credited with building the Ocean City Beach Patrol into the professional organization it is known as today. When Captain Craig turned...

(April 3, 2009) The man who not only epitomized the Ocean City Beach Patrol, but also built it into a serious and professional organization, passed away Saturday. When Capt. Robert (Bob) S. Craig turned 90 last July, a competition, dinner and slide show honored him for his 52 years as a town employee and member of the Beach Patrol. Thousands knew Craig from his years guiding the Beach Patrol and taking it from a small, relatively unskilled group of young men to a large group of highly skilled young men and women. Capt. Butch Arbin, the current head of the...

OCEAN CITY – Ocean City lost a treasured icon this week when Captain Robert S. Craig, who shepherded the Beach Patrol through decades of change and inspired his young charges for half a century passed away at the age of 90. Captain Craig, as he was known for decades not only by the thousands of lifeguards who worked with him and for him but also by the countless millions of local residents and visitors to the resort area, passed away last Saturday at the Coastal Hospice in Salisbury at the age of 90. A former schoolteacher and coach, Captain Craig...

WASHINGTON (AFP) – The US Treasury Department has given itself free rein in deciding the rescues of companies in the finance and auto sectors, according to two Treasury statements published this week. The Treasury on Friday released guidelines for its Targeted Investment Program (TIP), part of emergency legislation enacted in early October to ease a credit crunch from the worst global financial meltdown since the Great Depression. In the statement, the Treasury outlined the principles of the program under which it rescued ailing banking giant Citigroup on November 23. Under TIP, the Treasury said it would determine the eligibility of...

Whoops forgot link...APALACHICOLA, Fla. (CBS) - A Florida Fish and Wildlife biologist pulled off a daring rescue Saturday in the Panhandle: He rescued a bear with his bare hands. Officials say a 375-pound male black bear was seen roaming a residential neighborhood near Alligator Point, a neighborhood of about 100 homes on a small peninsula about 40 miles south of Tallahassee. The bear was hit with a tranquilizer dart, but he managed to bolt.. http://boknowsonline.com/2008/07/02/bear-ly-saved/

4/21/2008 - BAGRAM AIR BASE, Afghanistan (AFPN) -- The job of locating and returning servicemembers throughout the area of responsibility has taken a back seat for Airmen of the 305th Expeditionary Rescue Squadron here who now help save lives. Bagram Air Base Airmen provide aeromedical evacuation with their HH-60G Pave Hawk helicopters for injured International Security Assistance Force soldiers and local nationals, which is outside their traditional combat search and rescue duties. Since January, members of the rescue squadron to including the 33rd Expeditionary Rescue Squadron are credited with executing more than 250 combat sorties, flying more than 260 hours...

Ms Rabbit looked a bit hungover when she returned from her "Rabbits of Faith" convocation. This made for terse conversation

WASHINGTON - Everyone knows the Coast Guard has saved countless lives in U.S. waters. Now they've gone back and counted: more than 1 million rescues from the days of wooden sailing vessels to the current era of swooping high-tech helicopters. After reviewing old log books and records dating back nearly to 1790, when Congress created the 10-boat fleet that would eventually become the Coast Guard, the agency concluded that it has saved at least 1,109,310 lives. The Coast Guard is touting its exploits to mark its 217th birthday on Saturday — at a time when it comes under increasing criticism...

11 deaths reported as rescue crews struggle to keep up with emergencies. Rain poured down Thursday for the 16th straight day across Texas and Oklahoma, where flash floods and high winds have already killed 11 people. With little relief expected until the Fourth of July, emergency crews were being flown in from other states to help with rescue efforts.

WASHINGTON, April 15, 2007 – Coalition forces killed and captured several extremists in Afghanistan over the past few days, U.S. military officials reported. Coalition forces detained an extremist and discovered makeshift bomb-making material in a compound in Afghanistan’s Paktika province today. The compound consisted of multiple safe houses that use natural terrain to facilitate the movement of fighters from Pakistan. The bomb-making materials were destroyed in place. No shots were fired and no one was injured during the operation, officials said. Meanwhile, Afghan National Army and coalition troops operating in Afghanistan’s Helmand province received rocket-propelled grenade and small-arms fire...

Two helicopters from Davis-Monthan Air Force Base were called Saturday to rescue an American who suffered what appeared to be a stroke about 500 miles off the California coast. The helicopters, from the 943rd Rescue Group, were chosen because the Navy and Coast Guard cannot refuel in the air, said Capt. Eric Simon, of the 943rd. While there is a rescue group stationed at Moffett Federal Airfield in the San Francisco area, Capt. Simon said the holiday made it difficult to activate that group. The man was aboard the cargo ship Horizon Pacific when he began suffering stroke symptoms, according...

Helicopter rescues man chased by cows (Filed: 23/06/2006) A man and his dog had to be rescued from a bog by helicopter after being chased by a herd of cows, police have said.Cows can become angry The drama began when Tony Faye, 45, from Paignton, Devon, took his nine-year-old collie cross, Bailey, for a walk in fields close to the Double Locks hotel, near Exeter Canal. At some point during their stroll, a herd of cows apparently took a dislike to the pair and began pursuing them, forcing the man and his pet into a muddy bog. "I hit the...

AL ASAD, Iraq (June 6, 2006) -- Sipping on bottled water, rifle in hand and wearing a good 60 pounds of body armor on this sprawling U.S. military airbase, Lance Cpl. Emanuel Cantu says he doesn’t mind training for combat in Iraq’s blistering 110-plus degree temperature. In fact, he says he loves it. After all, four months of serving in Iraq as part of a quick reaction force has helped the 31-year-old Marine lose more than 20 pounds, but more importantly, he says he’s found his niche in the Marine Corps – training to save lives. “I feel like I’m...

The problem started when the primary electrical system failed. Sixty-eight people were trapped in the air aboard two red-and-white gondolas. Sunset was still three hours off. The tramway's supervisor of operations drove in from Westchester to get it going again. When that proved impossible, he turned on a diesel-powered hydraulic backup with just enough power to pull the gondolas back to shore. For a moment, it worked: the gondolas moved. But then the hydraulic backup failed, too. The supervisor, Armando Cordova, was out of options — beyond talking to the engineers at the European company that built the tramway and...

BAGHDAD, April 3, 2006 — In the midst of everything going on in Baghdad last week came the welcomed news that Christian Science Monitor reporter Jill Carroll had been released. By the time this article is published, Carroll will be in Boston for a well deserved repatriation with family and friends. It is unclear at this time why the group holding Carroll released her after more than 80 days in captivity. According to her kidnappers, it was because of the release earlier this year of some female detainees. That is an unlikely answer. Every month the coalition routinely releases suspects...

3/23/2006 - CAMP DENALI, Alaska (AFPN) -- Members of the Alaska Air National Guard saved a state trooper March 22 after his personal Piper Cub aircraft crashed 90 miles north of Dillingham. The pilot, Justin Rodgers, is a trooper with the Dillingham post of the Alaska Bureau of Wildlife Enforcement. Officer Rodgers and his father, Charles, were flying in two separate Piper Cub planes. Officer Rodgers separated to land his aircraft. When his father flew to the landing site, he found the downed, burning plane and reported the accident using an emergency frequency that was picked up by the Regional...

WASHINGTON, March 23, 2006 – Coalition forces rescued three hostages held by terrorists in Iraq since November in an early morning raid today, a Multinational Force Iraq spokesman said. "Based on intelligence that we recovered over the last 36 hours, an operation was planned and conducted, and those three hostages were rescued," Army Maj. Gen. Rick Lynch said during a briefing from Baghdad. "I'm happy to report all three are in good condition." The hostages, Christian peace activists, have undergone medical screening and are anxious to be reunited with their families, Lynch said. A fourth hostage, and the only American...

Trainer Rescues Dog from Fire Sergeant low-crawls through smoke to save his military working dog from blaze. By Chrissy Zdrakas 78th Air Base Wing Public Affairs ROBINS AIR FORCE BASE, Ga., March 16, 2006 — It was a clear, cool night at Forward Operating Base Wilson near the city of Tikrit in central Iraq. Staff Sgt. Christopher F. McCleskey gave his canine partner, Katja, food and water and left her in their quarters after a mission.      He ducked into a dining hall shortly before 9 p.m. Jan. 28 for a quick bite to eat.  A half hour later,...

1/27/2006 - THULE AIR BASE, Greenland (AFPN) -- With sub-zero temperatures, snow and winds exceeding 100 miles per hour, an unexpected Arctic storm struck here Jan. 24, trapping two Airmen without a heat source on the frigid tundra. Airmen 1st Class John Wood and Marc Chavis were rescued from their stranded patrol truck after U.S. and Danish personnel located them and transported them to the medical facility here. They were treated for first-degree frostbite. The Airmen are assigned to the 821st Security Forces Squadron. When the two patrolmen first set out across base to investigate an alarm, they had little...

SAN YSIDRO, Calif. — Puppy smugglers continue flooding the market with animals from Mexico, many of which die or pose health hazards to unsuspecting buyers, according to a recent survey. Animal welfare agency inspectors found 517 puppies, many concealed in vehicles and destined for swap meets across Southern California, during the two-week survey earlier this month at the San Ysidro and Otay Mesa ports of entry. [snip] To get them across the border, smugglers often stuff the dogs in packing crates or hide them in spare-tire wheel wells. The puppies are heard whimpering inside trunks or underneath seats. When bringing...

“Be ready to see something you’ve never seen before in your life.” Kenneth Ortolano, a volunteer with the Plaquemines Parish Emergency Operations office, pointed out the windshield of a Michigan Army National Guard CH-47 Chinook helicopter. Below and coming up quick, the crew could see what was left of Venice, Louisiana. After hurricane Katrina, it wasn’t much. “Look at all the boats on the backside of the levee. That was a marina with a bunch of condos. See where the white truck is? That’s the end of the road. The barge is right over there.” The Chinook crew and New...

CAMP MABRY, Texas (Army News Service, Sept. 27, 2005) – Task Force Search and Rescue of the Texas National Guard helped move 87 residents of an assisted-living facility to safety Sept. 24 after Hurricane Rita passed through the area. Task Force Bowie in Beaumont had received word earlier that day that the residents of Pine Forest Senior Center were in a school in Fred, Texas, without electricity or running water. A four-Soldier Humvee reconnaissance team was dispatched to check out the story. “We were en-route to Beaumont when we received the word,” said Sgt. Maj. Robert Strzelczek, who was part...

9/8/2005 - JACKSON, Miss. -- Since Air Force helicopters first started search-and-rescue operations 34 hours after Hurricane Katrina hit the Gulf Coast, Airmen here have rescued more than 4,000 people as of Sept. 7. Of that number, active-duty rescue units picked up more than 2,800, said Lt. Col. Bob Thompson, spokesman for the reserve components of the 347th Expeditionary Rescue Group. Guard and Reserve units picked up the remainder. First in the air over the stricken areas of Louisiana and Mississippi was an element of the Air Force Reserve’s 920th Rescue Squadron from Patrick Air Force Base, Fla. “The 920th...

WASHINGTON - Deep in St. Bernard Parish, just south of New Orleans, a man stubbornly refused to leave his home, insisting he must stay with the only things he had left in the world - his two bulldogs and eight young puppies. And three friends wouldn't go anywhere without him. So a Navy crew built a kennel at the nearby base and, with the dogs safely secured, finally persuaded the group to leave their homes. By Wednesday they were headed to a shelter in Texas - dogs and all, Navy Commander Mark Scovill, captain of the USS Tortuga, said Wednesday....

It was the climax of George W. Bush's video introduction at the Republican convention: the moment at Yankee Stadium during the 2001 World Series when he threw a pitch all the way to home plate. The video ended, and the conventioneers cheered as Mr. Bush strode onto a stage shaped like a pitcher's mound. Well, live by the pitch, die by the pitch. When you campaign as the man on the mound, the great leader whose arm rescues Americans in their moment of need, they expect you to deal with a hurricane, too. Mr. Bush made a lot of mistakes...

HURRICANE KATRINA: Official DoD Photos provided by Joint Combat Camera Center, Defense Visual Information Directorate. Over 180 images right now

Ms Dalton said the family had received countless offers of assistance to shelter the Millers in the United States once they make it out of the hurricane-affected area. "The citizens of America are offering more than what the officials are. And so is the media. They seem to be offering far more than the consulates and embassies and officials," she said. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Two Australian couples caught in the lawless mayhem of hurricane-ravaged New Orleans have been rescued by an Australian TV crew. Both couples - Tim and Joanne Miller of Rockhampton and fellow Queenslanders Garry and Cynthia Jones - have...

GOTTA SEE THIS - War for Enduring Freedom 4/3/03 - Rescues, Najaf, Nasiriyah, Arbil, Umm Qasr BREAKING: Freed behind Enemy Lines - POW Army Pfc. Jessica Lynch BREAKING: Freed in Az Zubaya - Black Watch BREAKING: Baghdad - Republican Guard palace + BREAKING: Najaf - cache of Iraqi weapons from Saddam's military school BREAKING: Nasiriyah - Battle lines BREAKING: Nasiriyah - captured Iraqi military base BREAKING: Nasiriyah - WMD-suits, masks and ammunition which were found at military installation BREAKING: Nasiriyah - freed Iraqi bedouins BREAKING: Arbil - Atropine injectors left by retreating Iraqis BREAKING: Halabja - New sheriff in town...

A crowd of 50 in Keithville, Louisiana, spent most of the night of 6 February 1991 trying to rescue a black bear caught 60 feet up a pine tree. A vet fired tranquillizer darts, and nets were strung to catch it. Several wildlife refuges were alerted to receive the animal. The tree was felled the next morning and a dart-riddled black plastic trash bag was recovered. Fall, 1997, the police dispatcher called for fire rescue and the nearest police cruiser for a dog tied to a dog house in a backyard that was flooding. Ensuing reports said that water was...