LONG BEACH, Calif. -- Two U.S. Coast Guard officers who live in Long Beach have been tapped for awards, the agency announced Tuesday.
Petty Officer Nathan D. Wissman was named Enlisted Person of Year for the Coast Guard's Los Angeles-Long Beach sector, and reserve Petty Officer James K. Wilkinson was named Reserve Enlisted Person of the Year.
Wissman, a Burbank native, trains security teams that board ships bound for the ports of Long Beach and Los Angeles. Of about 400 boardings last year, Wissman's team handled about half of them, according to the Coast Guard.
Wilkinson is the team leader for the Coast Guard's Inspections Division and the Facilities and Containers Branch.
He safely completed 113 hazardous-material inspections and identified 11 deficiencies that required the port captain make changes.
