NEW YORK – The partnership between the U.S. Coast Guard and the Palisades  Interstate Parkway Police Department will soon be formalized by a written agreement.

PIPPD is in the final stages of re-constituting its marine unit, with four vessels purchased with the aid of the New Jersey State Police. Astutely, PIPPD Chief Michael Coppola applied for and was awarded federal grant funds to equip these boats up to law enforcement and Coast Guard standards.

“The revitalization of the PIPPD is a win-win for the people of northern New Jersey,” said Captain Michael Day, Captain of the Port of New York and New Jersey, the senior Coast Guard officer in the area. “Not only do they get a greater search and rescue capability along a critical stretch of the Hudson but the first responder community on the river is that much more robust for overall safety and security.”

PIPPD has trained its boat crews up to Coast Guard standards and has close working relationships with neighboring marine units in Westchester and Rockland counties.

The formal agreement, expected to be signed shortly, commits PIPPD to providing a specified presence on the Hudson River, to performing joint missions with other stake holders and to acting under Coast Guard aegis during joint operations.

“We found PIPPD and Chief Coppola to be able and eager partners in the process of re-creating their marine unit,” said Mr. Frank Fiumano, Port Security Grant specialist at the Coast Guard, Sector New York. “Rarely have I seen a department that ‘got it’ better than PIPPD. They will make a fine addition to the fleet that serves the people of northern New Jersey and New York.”

Having PIPPD aboard as a marine unit is particularly desirable from a Coast Guard perspective. The unit will patrol a vital stretch of the Hudson River, from just north of the George Washington Bridge north to the state line. The area is replete with marinas, kayak camps and boat ramps as well as with generally heavy recreational boating traffic.

The location of PIPPD headquarters on high ground basically half way between the heavily trafficked and strategic GW and Tappan Zee Bridges is another plus. Should events so dictate, the modern headquarters would serve well as a forward command post for joint operations by a multi-jurisdictional task force.

“In short, we have every reason to be delighted at this move forward by PIPPD,” said Captain Day.

News Release

Date: Aug. 3, 2015

Contact: Public Affairs

(718) 354-2359

Agreement bolsters security