"The deed is done."

If you're a "Florida Hurricane Blogger" or follow them looking for information when a system's brewing, you've probably noticed some of us mentioning Ward (The Hurricane Magnet) Brewer. It doesn't matter where he is in Florida even if it's only for a quick visit, if there's a hurricane anywhere in the area it's going to aim itself straight at him. And you if he happens to be in your neighborhood. It's uncanny.

When not running from hurricanes, Ward's blog, Operation Enduring Service, is more about the effort he's involved with more than anything else. Confederate Yankee provides the perfect description:

The premise for the program was really quite simple and broken down into several easily understood parts.

Start with mothballed ships that were no longer of use to the Navy.

Convert those of historical significance to floating museums.

Take others in good shape, and turn them into disaster response ships.

The rest—those that had no historical significance or were too worn or obsolete and destined for a scrapyard—would be salvaged to help pay to restore the museum ships worth restoring. Like most truly good ideas, it was simple and direct.

Periodically Ward's mentioned difficulties he's had with the U.S. Maritime Administration, a government agency OES is required to coordinate with.

Again, Confederate Yankee:

[T]he "Salvation Navy" . . . ran into the buzzsaw of incompetence, corruption, and criminality that may eventually implicate officials within the U.S Maritime Administration, the Department of Transportation, and other members of the Executive and Legislative branches.

More here.

Ward writes:

The information is in the proper hands, the investigations are beginning, our lawsuits have begun...MARAD officials will be served shortly.

You would not believe the firestorm that has just been started. The deed is done........

It's been a long time coming. Stay tuned to OES for developments.