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CAPT
Meredith Austin
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CAPT Austin assumed the duties of the Fourteenth Coast Guard
District Chief of Staff in June 2012 in Honolulu, HI. Prior to this
position, she has executed and/or supported the Coast Guard's eleven mission
areas at a variety of Coast Guard units including the icebreaker USCGC POLAR
SEA, Marine Safety Offices in Louisville, Kentucky and Galveston, Texas, the
Eleventh Coast Guard District in Long Beach, California, Training Center
Yorktown, Virginia and the Deployable Operations Group in Arlington,
Virginia.
In July
2001, she assumed command of the Pacific Strike Team, with responsibilities
to respond to oil and hazardous materials discharges for the Coast Guard and
the Environmental Protection Agency for the Western United States, Alaska,
Hawaii and the Pacific Territories.
In June 2004 she assumed command of the National
Strike Force (NSF), consisting of the three regional Strike Teams, the
Public Information and Assist Team and the National Strike Force
Coordination Center. Noteworthy responses include the World Trade Center
disaster, The Capitol Anthrax and Ricin incidents and the
massive NSF response to Hurricanes Katrina and Rita.
In 2009 CAPT
Austin assumed command of Sector Delaware Bay, encompassing the southern
half of New Jersey, eastern two thirds of Pennsylvania and all of Delaware
and directed the execution and support of missions performed by six Search
and Rescue Stations, five cutters, two Aids to Navigation Teams, a Marine
Safety Detachment, Sector Field Office as well as the Sector itself. She
worked closely with port partners from local, state and federal agencies, as
well as private industry and non-governmental organizations. In response to
the 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil spill, CAPT Austin served first as Deputy
Incident Commander, then as the Incident Commander for the state of
Louisiana, directing the activities of over 19,000 responders.
CAPT Austin is a 1985 graduate of the United States Coast Guard
Academy with a degree in Marine Science. She earned a Master of Science in
Public Health in Industrial Hygiene from the University of North
Carolina-Chapel Hill in 1994
and a Master of Arts in Homeland Security
from the Naval Postgraduate School in Monterey, California in 2007.
CAPT Austin is a NIMS certified Type I Incident
Commander and has earned the designations of Certified Industrial Hygienist
and Certified Emergency Manager. CAPT Austin’s awards include the Legion of
Merit, CG Meritorious Service Medal (with Operational Device, 4 awards), CG
Commendation Medal (with Operational Device, 2 awards), DOT 9-11 Medal, CG
Achievement Medal (with Operational Device, 3 awards) Commandant's Letter of
Commendation (with Operational Device, 2 awards) and the Marine Safety
Designation.
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