Hundreds of rivers and tributaries empty into the Puget Sound and they come bearing more than just water. Numerous trees, garbage, and debris make its way to the Sound every day.

And were it not for the efforts of four dedicated men and a 60-year old, 104-foot debris boat, the Puget Sound would be one cluttered body of water.

Fortunately for both commercial and private vessels, Robert Kaiser, captain of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) debris boat, M/V Puget, ensures that no log is left unturned.

Kaiser and his crew patrol the Puget Sound in search of hazards to navigation.  It’s their job to remove these hazards so waterway traffic can traverse the Sound unfettered.

But what is a hazard to navigation? On a blustery Tuesday morning last week, Puget was loaded down with 70 tons worth of them. 

Enormous tree trunks were stacked six-feet high along with what appeared to be several thick pieces of an old pier. All of these potential hazards were found floating in Port Gardiner Bay.

Crewmember, Joseph Gustafson, says this is only a small array of what the debris vessel picks up throughout the Sound.

“We get tires, large chucks of Styrofoam, and concrete dock sections that have broken free,” he said. “We even pick up abandoned boats. If it’s out there, we’re picking it up.”

Alas the Puget’s area of operation stretches from Canada down to Olympia. Thus every weekday the small four-man crew has the Herculean task of removing some very dangerous objects from the water.

“Can you imagine a 17-foot boat running into something like that,” said Gustafson as he pointed his thumb at an enormous 30-foot hemlock tree. “Look at the damage that could cause.”

Indeed many of the items pulled from Port Gardiner during the ships two-day cleanup could easily cause the average mariner to have a very bad day. But of all the possible hazards, perhaps most dastardly of all is the dreaded deadhead.

Deadheads are partially submerged hazards that stick out from the water. At first glance, it’s often difficult to measure just how deep the object is immersed. Therefore, Puget is quick to remove these potential hazards as soon as they’re reported.

Puget is outfitted with a crane that’s authorized to lift up to 20 tons. So as the ship sidles up to the hazard, the crane scoop up the object and lays it on the ship’s forecastle. 

For objects that are in waters too shallow for the debris vessel, the Puget is also equipped with a small boat. This boat is lowered into the water by the crane and is dispatched out to the hazard. Once there, a crewmember will tow the object back to a retrievable depth.

Eventually, all the hazards are bundled together by chain and taken to the Chittenden Locks in Ballard, Wash., where the material is offloaded onto one of three floating barges.

“Usually twice a year we’ll fill all three of the barges up and have a debris contractor come in and haul the barges away to a landfill,” said Gustafson.

A lot is asked of this former Navy seaplane recovery vessel commissioned during World War II.  Although the Navy had previously decommissioned it, the ship found new life when the ACOE acquired the ship in 1968.  Since then, it’s been put to valuable use.

“We’re the only vessel in the Puget Sound that does this,” said Kaiser, referring to the mission of the Debris vessel.  Kaisers says, on average, the ship pays a visit to Everett every five to six weeks.

So after a quick lunch on this Tuesday, Puget’s crew quickly gets the ship underway for an afternoon of more of the same. Although it’s loaded with 70 tons of debris, it can easily hold up to 100.

Today Puget’s in Everett, next week it’s Tacoma. After that, it could be Anacortes, Bellingham or even Lake Washington.

“We go wherever we’re needed,” said Gustafson, with a grin.

Crewmember Skip Green says that while the job may be taxing, it’s a job every Puget crewmember relishes.

“It’s a fantastic job,” he said. “We’re out on the Sound every day plus we’re doing a great service for the public. “However, you’ve got to love the job.  You’ve got to enjoy being out on the water regardless if it’s raining, windy, or sunny,” Green added. “But if you have good people to work with like I do, it makes it all the better.”