Feb. 20, 1993, was a blustery day on Oahu's west shore; the waves peaked at more than 10 feet and the wind howled as a wolf does during a full moon. Off in the distance, crewmembers aboard a fishing boat were having trouble navigating their vessel through the thunderous waves.
Then - a loud crash! The fishing boat Kanoe had capsized in the surf and the crew was tossed into the unforgiving rumbling waves. Two of the frightened crewmen were screaming and swimming for their lives; a third fisherman was unaccounted for.
Petty Officer 3rd Class Jim Garland was surfing near the incident at the time and noticed the distress. Garland swiftly paddled his surfboard to the scene and retrieved two life jackets from the water. As Garland helped two fishermen get their personal flotation devices on, the grateful men explained there was a third crewmember still missing. Garland believed him to be trapped in the hull of the capsized vessel. Disregarding his own safety, Garland bravely dove under the capsized vessel to locate the missing man. Due to the debris and fuel from the vessel, he was unable to locate the missing crewmember.
After Garland returned to the surface, the missing fisherman appeared, gasping for air. Garland immediately gave the struggling man his surfboard for flotation until fellow lifeguards with the City and County of Honolulu's Ocean Safety Division arrived on scene.
Garland was awarded the Coast Guard Commendation Medal at Group Honolulu, May 6, 1993, for rescuing the three fishermen.
"He was on his day off during that rescue," said Capt. Kevin Allen, Garland's supervisor and employee with Ocean Saftey for the past 19 years. "That's the kind of guy he is - professional, calm and always willing to lend a helping hand."
Garland was born July 3, 1968, in southern California and has been in or near water for as long as he can remember.
"He matches the typical ‘Baywatch' lifeguard persona -- he's tall, dark and full of charisma," said Monica Daily, a regular at Oahu's beaches and a longtime acquaintance. "It's hard not to like him."
Garland joined the Coast Guard in 1989 in part because Coast Guard Station Channel Island's search and rescue (SAR) alarm pierced his ears while he surfed the shores of Ventura, Calif.
"I saw the small boats coming and going, and I thought search and rescue missions would be a perfect fit for me," said Garland.
A year later, he graduated from Radioman "A" School at the Coast Guard Training Center in Petaluma, Calif., and then was stationed at Group Honolulu in 1991. Garland left active duty two years later and joined the Coast Guard Reserves in May 1993 in order to pursue his education and dream of becoming a lifeguard on Oahu.
Shortly after joining the Reserves, Garland was protecting lives at Waikiki Beach as a lifeguard. In 1999 he graduated from the University of Hawaii with a bachelor's degree in communications.
"I was really impressed with his drive and determination that he had while pursuing his degree; when Garland sets a goal, he makes it happen," said Calvin Viloria, a 30-year Ocean Safety veteran and a U.S. Army Reservist. "When I think of a consummate professional, I think of Jimmy Garland."
After earning his degree, Garland's next goal was to become a Coast Guard officer. In September 2000, he was accepted to the Reserve Officer Candidate Indoctrination School in New London, Conn.
Shortly after he graduated, Garland was re-called to active duty after Sept. 11, and served six years on active duty at the Joint Rescue Coordination Center (JRCC) in Honolulu while on leave from Ocean Safety.
Today, Garland is a lieutenant and serves as a search and rescue coordinator in the JRCC and, as of September 2007, he is also a full-time lifeguard with Ocean Safety working the heavy surf beaches of southeast Oahu.
"I really love working near the ocean, and I've enjoyed incorporating my Coast Guard training such as the National Search and Rescue School, Contingency Preparedness School, and Incident Command System 100 - 800 with my training as a lifeguard," said Garland. "The education has given me greater insight to the management of both SAR and immediate rescue operations while on duty at the beach."
Garland's primary duty in the Coast Guard is to control communications in the JRCC. During a SAR case, he incorporates satellite communications, global navigation, and electronic charts in order to gather real-time target location.
Garland was awarded the Coast Guard Achievement Medal and was cited for his superior performance while serving as a command center controller, from July 2003 to September 2007. In four years, Garland helped coordinate more than 350 search and rescue cases in the Central and Western Pacific Ocean, resulting in more than 200 lives saved.
"Jimmy has a very calming effect on people and because he's so mild mannered, that helps dramatically during a rescue case," said Lt. Cmdr. Kevin Floyd, U.S. Coast Guard District Fourteen command center chief. "He has an extensive lifesaving background and that experience allows him to handle stressful situations very well."
After a series of fatal mishaps that grounded the Hawaii Air Ambulance, Garland successfully coordinated medical transportation, supplies, and trained personnel for the inter-island transfer of 22 critically ill patients to advanced life support on Oahu. That is just one of the more recent examples of his exceptional professionalism and operational expertise.
Garland demonstrated outstanding planning skills by orchestrating the rescue of two pilots forced to ditch their aircraft 530 nautical miles northeast of Hawaii, May 2006. Swiftly managing the situation, he diverted the motor vessel Virginius, Coast Guard, Navy, and civilian aircraft to the scene. His proficient coordination resulted in the rescuing the pilots within five minutes after they entered the water.
Garland has an extensive Coast Guard law enforcement background as well.
Garland's operational expertise and superior management skills helped facilitate the apprehension and seizure of the fishing vessel Chuen Fa Sheng #21, that was caught fishing in the Commonwealth of the Northern Marianas Islands' U. S. Exclusive Economic Zone. Garland constantly monitored the C-130 flight and intercepting cutter on scene and processed critical case information, helping to ensure that all evidence was properly handled.
Garland works with professionals from two different fields of ocean rescue and recognizes the valuable part he plays as a link between the Ocean Saftey and the Coast Guard in Hawaii.
"Combined training exercises between CCHOS and the Coast Guard have really improved our ability to work as a big team when events happen," added Garland.
Garland has been living on Oahu for 20 years and is extremely familiar with the lay of the land. Due to his 15 years of Hawaiian water rescue, he has ‘hands-on' knowledge of people and resources, and he knows who to call in an emergency situation.
"His local knowledge makes rescue operations run smoothly," said Jennifer Conklin, a search and rescue specialist at the JRCC. "He professionally balances two worlds of water rescue, all while acting as an inter-agency link between us and the state of Hawaii."
As a veteran participant in annual hurricane exercises, Garland's insight fostered seamless communication between agencies, including State Civil Defense, the Federal Emergency Management Agency, and Department of Defense.
Garland said he is living his Coast Guard dream here in Hawaii. He has come a long way from hearing the SAR alarm in Ventura and watching Coast Guard assets race off to a rescue. On any given day he helps to save lives, no matter what uniform he is wearing.
