PORT ANGELES — U.S. Coast Guard Lt. Cmdr. Andre Billeaudeaux, the founder of a volunteer group that helps watch the coast, describes himself as a Cajun who believes that “simple solutions make sense.”
He has applied that rule to what can be a complex problem for the Coast Guard — monitoring the hundreds of miles of U.S. coastline.
Billeaudeaux, director of auxiliary for the 13th Coast Guard District based in Seattle, is the creator of Citizen’s Action Network, which could be called the “citizens’ Coast Guard.”
It is the eyes and ears of the Coast Guard.
The network consists of ordinary civilians who have one thing in common — they live on the coast.
Billeaudeaux thought of the idea to enlist the assistance of people who lived in houses overlooking the water while on duty in Puerto Rico in the late 1990s.
He patrolled the waters, looking for illegal aliens from the Dominican Republic attempting to enter neighboring Costa Rica.
“I thought, why don’t they [the Coast Guard] just let those people be on the lookout?” he said.
He was able to implement his idea when he was transferred to the Puget Sound region.
The program has been operating under the auspices of the Coast Guard Auxiliary for 10 years, without funding.
It depends heavily on an all-volunteer crew and donations of equipment such as night vision goggles.
“This is government at its best level –the citizens’ level,” he said.
The volunteers assist the Coast Guard in monitoring the coastline from Puget Sound to the Pacific Ocean.
They may be called on to help locate overdue or stolen vessels, give on-site weather conditions or report suspicious activity.
A map on the group’s Web site at www.citizen sactionnetwork.net shows dense clusters of dots for the approximately 350 watchers in Washington state and Oregon. About 30 percent of those are Coast Guard Auxiliary members.
“Some of these members have lived in their houses for 40 years,” Billeaudeaux said. “Their area knowledge is priceless.”
Network members are alerted by a variety of methods, including a digital broadcast system that sends alerts to cell phones.
He stressed this is not an avenue for marine vigilantism and that volunteers should not go after subjects on their own.
“They can help by directing,” he said.
However, with the Coast Guard stretched thin, network members have been known to assist in marine rescues before the Coast Guard boats or helicopters can arrive.
There are far more network “bases” than Coast Guard bases.
Searching for missing vessels or tracking a marine distress call over hundreds of square miles of water can also be time-consuming and expensive for the Coast Guard. Having citizens aid the search is efficient and cost-effective, Billeaudeaux said.
Billeaudeaux is in town to assist with a network training session for the Coast Guard Auxiliary Flotilla 42 on Saturday at the Port Angeles Coast Guard station. The session is not open to the public.
The training will cover how to report suspicious activity at sea and how to work in teams to pinpoint the location of disabled or lost vessels. A Customs and Border Protection agent will discuss drug smuggling, stolen boats and terrorists.
Leo Leonard, Flotilla 42 commander, said the Clallam County group focuses mainly on marine environmental and fisheries issues and covers more than 100 miles of coastline from Sequim to Neah Bay and LaPush.
The network also has members in Jefferson County.
Leonard said anyone can be involved; all that is needed is a phone and a marine view.
“The idea is simple, but magic,” he said.
Billeaudeaux would love to see the program expand nationally, but that is difficult without funding.
He manages the program as part of his duties with the Thirteenth Coast Guard District Auxiliary.
“I’d love to get funding,” he said.
For information on the Citizen’s Action Network, visit the Web site at www.citizensactionnetwork.net.
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Features editor Marcie Miller can be reached at 360-452-5467 or marcie.miller@peninsuladaily news.com.
