New Morgan City commander 'grew up in the Coast Guard'

A desire to lead is a part of being a U.S. Coast Guard member, and Cmdr. Ben Russell, the new commanding officer of Marine Safety Unit Morgan City, has received that opportunity.
Russell, who was installed as the local Coast Guard leader in a change of command ceremony Friday, is in his first role as a commanding officer.
“This has been an amazing opportunity for me and my family,” he said Wednesday. “As Coast Guard officers, you’re encouraged to always inspire to command, and it really becomes part of a Coast Guard life.”
Russell takes over for Cmdr. Heather Mattern, who left Morgan City after three years of service for a new post.
Russell, who has been a Coast Guard member since 2000, graduated as a third-class petty officer and marine science technician.
“I grew up in the Coast Guard, basically in marine safety,” he said.
He comes to Morgan City after serving four years in New Orleans on the District 8 Commander’s staff.
He said he and his wife, Jennifer, have been impressed by the local Coast Guard staff.
“The women and men of Coast Guard MSU Morgan City are outstanding, and my predecessor told me as much,” Russell said.
As commanding officer in Morgan City, he and his staff will be tasked with keeping local waterways safely navigable. One component of that involves dredging. He said the Coast Guard works closely with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, who handles dredging, to locate areas that need to be dredged and take care of them.
Morgan City is located on the Gulf Intracoastal Waterway and many vessels through the Gulf Coast pass through the city annually.
As commander, he said making Morgan City “one of the Coast Guard’s premier towing vessel inspection and servicing ports” is a goal.
“Day to day, I want us to make sure that working with our community leaders and our industry stakeholders that we continue to have a vibrant waterway,” Russell said.
He also said he wants to enhance education among recreational boaters.
“Certainly Morgan City has a huge commercial nexus, but there’s also recreational users out there. … There is risks out there, but I think we can do some education and some outreach with the Coast Guard and our other local law enforcement partners. … With those partnerships and outreach with the community, we hope to make the recreationalist a lot safer,” he said.
As he begins his time in Morgan City, Russell said it is a place that is known throughout the Coast Guard as a great area for Coast Guard members to live and work.
He said that members of the local unit are more than just stationed in Morgan City.
“Certainly, we’re the federal regulator, but we also live here, and we want to make sure that people know that and that we want to be a part of this community,” Russell said.