PORTSMOUTH, Va. — U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Seneca arrived at its new home base in Portsmouth on Friday.
The Seneca has spent the last 33 years based in Boston. It handles a lot of different missions, including homeland security, counter-drug law enforcement, fisheries law enforcement, and other things.
With an assigned crew of 100 people, the Seneca is the sixth of 13 Famous Class Medium Endurance Cutters and was commissioned in 1987.
"Coast Guard Cutter Seneca handles almost all of the Coast Guard's missions, search and rescue, law enforcement, fisheries enforcement, marine pollution response and disaster response," said Seneca Commanding Officer Matthew Rooney.
The Coast Guard said the change of homeport is to better provide service to the ships and crews in a centralized location.
"Because most of our counter-drug operations are down south. It puts it a little bit closer to the area of operation from being in Boston," said Coast Guard Rear Admiral Keith Smith. "It's about three days closer to that area of operations, so one of the primary reasons [for its relocation]. But centrally located also makes it a little bit easier. We have a lot of our other cutters here as well."
The Seneca arrived at Coast Guard Base Portsmouth on Friday afternoon.