PANAMA CITY — Marine service technology students at Haney Technical Center worked for a month and a half on restoring a Coast Guard vessel for the Lynn Haven Fire Department to use.
The vessel, which students said was gutted and given a new engine, can now be used by the Fire Department as a rescue and search boat, said Lynn Haven Fire Chief John DeLonjay.
“It was fun," said student Will Tabler of the work done on the vessel.
Tabler was one of 18 students in instructor Bobby Miller’s class. Tabler said the vessel had no engine and that he and others started from scratch on the class project.
“It was totally stripped," said Tabler of the vessel’s condition while the class worked on it.
According to Tabler, newer students worked on the boat’s wiring, while those who had been in the class longer handled the motor. Tabler is a first year student and so worked on the wiring, he said.
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Tabler was among a group at a Lynn Haven City Council meeting on Feb. 10 when the council thanked the class for their work on the vessel.
All of the Fire Department personnel were at the meeting, Tabler said, adding the feeling of doing something for Lynn Haven was “real nice.“
Jeremy Hines was another student who worked on the vessel.
“It was an adventure," Hines said.
Hines said the vessel was “completely gutted" of all usable parts. Hines rebuilt the carburetor and thermostat for the vessel, he said, along with changing the oil. Giving back to the community was “rewarding," Hines said.
The vessel first came to the class’ attention when the Fire Department showed Miller the boat, said Miller, who has a business doing carburetor repairs in the summer. The vessel was donated to the Fire Department by the Coast Guard, Miller said. He suggested to the Fire Department the boat be brought to the school for the students to work on, with the City Council giving the Fire Department approval to do so.
His class took the repair slow, according to Miller, who added different students participated in work on the boat in different steps according to their skill level. The work took place from October to around Thanksgiving, Miller said.
The boat wasn’t usable when it was first brought into class, Miller said, adding the “wiring was bad."
“All the students did it," said Miller of the repair work.
Miller said it was a great satisfaction for Lynn Haven to show appreciation to the center.
Having the vessel in usable condition broadens the Fire Department’s range, DeLonjay said. He said there was no bill to the city for the work, with students being educated for the workforce and helping the community at the same time.
“It’s a great emotion to show our appreciation to the community and local schools," said DeLonjay of the students being recognized.
