More than 100 new residents now calling Mayport home.
The Coast Guard Cutter Valiant has docked at Naval Station Mayport, which will now serve as its new permanent homeport.
“We’re more than happy to have them in our base and, you know, they’ve joined the Mayport team,” says Mayport Spokesman Bill Austin.
76 Coast Guardsmen and their families come with the ship which is relocating from Miami.
Austin says that will mean an economic boost beyond just the base.
“Some live on base in our housing, and some live out in town, and they’re all part of the Jacksonville community,” he says.
The Valiant operates in the Atlantic Ocean, Caribbean Sea and Gulf of Mexico. The cutter performs search and rescue, maritime law enforcement, marine environmental protection, defense readiness, and ports/waterways/coastal security.
It is the only Coast Guard cutter permanently homeported at Naval Station Mayport at this time.