Navy Divers Entertain Crowds during Chattanooga Navy Week 2011

By Stacey Byington, Trident Refit Facility, Kings Bay Public Affairs

CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. (NNS) -- Six Navy divers from Trident Refit Facility aboard Naval Submarine Base Kings Bay, Ga., are diving in the Tennessee Aquarium in Chattanooga, TN, entertaining crowds of people, June 14-17, as part of Chattanooga Navy Week 2011.

Led by Chief Navy Diver Kevin Moore, the divers are demonstrating their skills and equipment in the aquarium's Secret Reef exhibit, swimming among sharks, stingrays, and numerous types of fish while answering questions about their lives as Navy divers and talking to visitors at the aquarium. The exhibit replicates the Flower Garden Banks National Sanctuary, located about 115 miles south of Texas, which is the northernmost reef in North America.

"Chattanooga is a great town, and we are delighted to be able to participate in the Riverbend Festival and Chattanooga Navy Week," said Moore. "This is a great opportunity to show what Navy divers do. A couple of our divers have family members living in the Chattanooga area, and it is the first time some of them have seen us dive."

In addition to the dives in the aquarium, the divers are manning a static display of current and past diving equipment every day, interacting with Chattanooga area media, and participating in several community service projects.

The Chattanooga Navy Week celebration, held during the Riverbend Festival, kicked off June 11 and continues through June 18. The week-long event gives area residents an opportunity to meet some of the Navy's Sailors and learn about the Navy's critical mission and its broad-ranging capabilities.

The U.S. Navy conducts approximately 21 Navy Weeks each year, reaching out to communities across the country to show Americans the investment they have made in their Navy as a Global Force for Good. During a Navy Week celebration, the Navy concentrates a variety of outreach events in a metropolitan area, sharing the Navy story with as many people as possible.

In addition to the divers from Trident Refit Facility, other Navy personnel participating in Chattanooga Navy Week included Sailors from USS Constitution, the oldest commissioned warship in the U.S. Navy; several Sailors from USS Tennessee (SSBN 734), homeported in Kings Bay; and other units from all over the region. Navy musicians from Navy Band Mid-South also gave special performances at various venues around the city.

Senior Navy leaders engaged with local corporate, civic, government and education leaders during the week. Headlining Chattanooga Navy Week are Vice Adm. Harry Vice Adm. Harry B. Harris, Jr., commander, U.S. 6th Fleet; Rear Adm. Donald R. Gintzig, deputy chief Medical Operations and Future Plans, Bureau of Medicine and Surgery; and Master Chief Petty Officer of the Navy (MCPON) Rick D. West.

Other cities and states hosting a 2011 Navy Week are the Quad Cities; Chicago; Rochester, N.Y.; Detroit; Los Angeles; Fargo, N.D.; Indianapolis; Cincinnati; Omaha, Neb.; New England; Albuquerque, N.M.; El Paso and San Antonio, Texas.