No one was hurt when the mine countermeasures ship USS Guardian (MCM 5) ran aground on Tubbataha Reef at 2:25 a.m. local time, Jan. 17, while transiting the Sulu Sea.

The Avenger-class ship had just completed a port call in Subic Bay, Olongapo City and was en route to her next port of call when the grounding occurred. The ship is currently stuck on the reef, approximately 80 miles east-southeast of Palawan Island. The crew is currently working to determine the best method of safely extracting the ship.

The cause of the grounding is under investigation.

Marines shouting “prepping frag,” bellowed as they reached in their pouch to pull out a practice grenade. “Frag out,” they shouted as the practice grenades flew through the air.

The Marines continued to successfully move through the course after confirming the practice grenades hit their targets.

A storm New Year's Eve ran an arctic drilling rig aground on an Alaskan island and two new Chinook helicopters from Fort Wainwright, Alaska, came to the rescue.

The Royal Dutch Shell Arctic rig Kulluk Salvage is a circular drill barge that does not have propulsion and needed heavy equipment to restore operational power. The U.S. Army 1st Battalion, 52nd Aviation Regiment, out of Fort Wainwright was able to support the recovery operation.

The forward deployed Whidbey Island-class dock landing ship USS Germantown (LSD 42), part of the Bonhomme Richard Amphibious Ready Group (ARG), departed Tuesday, Jan. 15, for its spring deployment in the 7th Fleet Area of Responsibility.

Germantown will take part in an amphibious integration training (AIT) and certification exercise (CERTEX), participate in the annual multinational combined joint training exercise Cobra Gold, and conduct various other exercises.

Airmen of the 446th Airlift Wing teamed up with a local police dive team to conduct familiarization training on the C-17 Globemaster here Jan. 10.

Nate Condreay, Pierce County Metro deputy sheriff and rescue diver, reached out to the 446th AW for Air Force aircraft specialists to train the police dive team in the intricacies of the C-17. Lt. Col. David Jeske, chief of 446th AW Combat Readiness, answered the call.

As a part of the Department of the Navy, being amphibious warfighters has always been an innate aspect of being a Marine. Marines stormed the beaches of the Pacific and manned Navy ships at sea. Although not a yearly requirement like the physical fitness training tests, swim qualification is still a mandated Marine Corps training requirement that has the power to save a Marine’s life.

In 2003, two Marines drowned while trying to cross the Suddam Canal while bearing a full combat load in Iraq.

The forward deployed Whidbey Island-class dock landing ship USS Tortuga (LSD 46), part of the Bonhomme Richard Amphibious Ready Group (ARG), departed its homeport Jan. 14, for its spring deployment in the 7th Fleet Area of Responsibility.

Tortuga will take part in an Amphibious Integration Training (AIT) and Certification Exercise (CERTEX), participate in the annual multinational combined joint training exercise Cobra Gold, and conduct various other exercises.

The U.S. Army Special Forces Underwater Operations School is well-known throughout the military community. However, when tourists and residents flew over Key West, Fla., and saw the school's 50-foot free ascent dive tower on a Naval base, many thought it belonged to the U.S. Navy.

That changed on Dec. 7, 2012 when the school hosted a ceremony unveiling the tower's new ink which reads "U.S. ARMY SPECIAL FORCES" on the roof and displays the Army's Special Operations Combat Diver Badge and Green Beret around the sides of the building, making their presence known.

Guided-missile frigate USS GARY (FFG 51) and its embarked U.S. Coast Guard Law Enforcement Detachment Team (LEDET), TACLET South, turned a routine boarding into a display of joint proficiency and while conducting maritime interception operations in the 4th Fleet Area of Responsibility Jan. 8.

While on patrol in the Eastern Pacific in support of Operation Martillo, Gary encountered a small vessel loaded with cargo that was deemed a contact of interest (COI). The vessel displayed several indicators which constituted reasonable suspicion that it was participating in illicit trafficking.