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The United States Coast Guard announced Wednesday it will create a new Special Missions Command in Kearneysville, West Virginia.
The Special Missions Command (SMC) will put the Coast Guard’s deployable special forces under a single commander. Although many of the teams will remain at their current locations, the SMC will house an additional 130 Guard members in Kearneysville.
The move, said the Guard, ensures that the most elite teams they have are trained, equipped and prepared to respond to a wide range of national emergencies and security threats.
“The creation of the Special Missions Command is a vital evolution for our service,” Adm. Kevin Lunday, Commandant of the Coast Guard, said. “We are forging our most elite operators into a single, razor-sharp instrument of national power.”
Units to be housed at the Kearneysville location include teams with expertise in maritime security; chemical, biological and nuclear threats; trafficking and global criminal networks; and three national strike teams prepared to respond to complex crises and natural disasters.
The Guard said the move is one way the service is evolving to become a stronger, more capable fighting force for responding to emerging technology and threats.
Sen. Shelley Moore Capito said in a statement the decision is a “testament to the capabilities and strategic value West Virginia offers.”
Congressman Riley Moore said the move is a “major step forward in strengthening our nation’s maritime security and ensuring we are prepared to meet evolving threats across the globe.”
The new center is scheduled to be commissioned around October 1.