The Coast Guard has issued a bulletin on how U.S. mariners can receive free duplicate merchant mariner credentials (MMCs) to replace originals lost or destroyed as a result of Hurricane Michael or subsequent flooding.

The bulletin said that mariners should follow the following steps to obtain an expedited replacement credential:

• Provide a statement of loss to the National Maritime Center (NMC) either by fax to (304) 433-3412 or via e-mail to [email protected]. The statement should contain: mariner’s full name, mariner’s date of birth, mariner’s reference number or social security number, current mailing address, current phone number and/or e-mail address and a brief description of the circumstances surrounding the loss/destruction of the credential.

Unless otherwise requested, any duplicate MMCs issued per the request process above must include a corresponding Medical Certificate. The Coast Guard will make every effort to have duplicate credentials mailed out the next business day. Alternatively, mariners may submit a CG-719B, Application for MMC, to one of the Regional Examination Centers with the information above.

If an MMC is unserviceable due to damage or your lost credential is subsequently found, that credential should be mailed to: Commanding Officer, United States Coast Guard, National Maritime Center, 100 Forbes Drive, Martinsburg, WV 25404. For questions or concerns, visit the NMC website, or contact the NMC Customer Service Center by e-mailing [email protected], by using the NMC online chat system, or by calling 1-888-IASKNMC (427-5662).

David Krapf has been editor of WorkBoat, the nation’s leading trade magazine for the inland and coastal waterways industry, since 1999. He is responsible for overseeing the editorial direction of the publication. Krapf has been in the publishing industry since 1987, beginning as a reporter and editor with daily and weekly newspapers in the Houston area. He also was the editor of a transportation industry daily in New Orleans before joining WorkBoat as a contributing editor in 1992. He has been covering the transportation industry since 1989, and has a degree in business administration from the State University of New York at Oswego, and also studied journalism at the University of Houston.