On Wednesday morning the U.S. Coast Guard hosted an event to showcase the most impressive videos of the past year at the Coast Guard Training Center in Cape May. Recruits then voted on which videos they liked best and say the footage is absolutely breathtaking.
Kendra Wise, a Coast Guard recruit, said, "I thought they were great. It shows us exactly what we are training those whole eight weeks for, and what we are going to be doing once we leave here."
Owen Gibbons, an Executive Officer at the Cape May Training Center, said, "There is a lot of drama involved in rescues at sea. There is a lot of nature's power that is revealed in some of these videos."
"We take a time–out from training and we show them exactly what they are going to be doing when they leave here," added Donnie Brzuska, the Public Affairs Officer for the camp.
The videos include everything from Hurricane Sandy rescues in Atlantic City, to Coast Guard training in Oregon - where recruits saw swells over 15ft high.
The event was held in order to provide a glimpse into the intense training required to be a Coast Guard swimmer, and also to motivate the recruits that will be doing some of these front-line missions within weeks.
Wise said, "You just hope that, you know, you are mentally prepared once you get out there to handle those situations." Gibbons then explained, "What we found is that recruits are enthusiastic about it. They get a chance to see their future on the screen, so to speak. They get a chance to get excited about the work that they're preparing to go do.
Coast Guard officials say the videos will be released starting Saturday on their Facebook page and that a new video will be released each day through December 31st.
The Coast Guard's Facebook page can be found here.
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https://www.facebook.com/UScoastguard
