PORT HADLOCK — Jeffrey D. Hartman will tell of life aboard a Coast Guard icebreaker during a presentation at 6:30 p.m. tonight (Wednesday night).
The free lecture, “Icebreaking Alaska,” will be at the Jefferson County Library, 620 Cedar Avenue in Port Hadlock.
It is part of the library’s Escape the Ordinary Adult Summer Reading program.
Hartman is the author of the books Guarding Alaska: A Memoir of Coast Guard Missions on the Last Frontier and Icebreaking Alaska.
Icebreaking Alaska is the newest addition to Arcadia Publishing’s Images of America series.
The book has more than 200 vintage images and includes memories of Alaska’s growing oil-dependent economy.
Hartman, who retired as a captain from the Coast Guard after 30 years, had four assignments in Alaska.
He is an experienced search and rescue helicopter pilot, flew helicopters off icebreakers, and served as chief of search and rescue for the Coast Guard in Alaska and as program manager of the naval component of the Alaskan Command.
Many are drawn to the Arctic for its rewards, organizers said.
A century ago, the reward was whale oil; today, it is petroleum. Significant offshore oil and natural gas deposits are of great interest to an oil-dependent economy.
The increasing open water in the warmer months is attracting cruise ships to tour the Arctic.
Oil spills or maritime emergencies can arise a long way off from assistance, and legendary Arctic storms are, if anything, becoming more intense.
The Coast Guard is charged with protecting seafarers, enforcing laws and facilitating commerce in areas inaccessible by roads or by sea except for icebreakers the majority of the year.
For more information, see www.jclibrary.info or call 360-385-6544.
