Signals: Civilian mariners barred from leaving MSC ships during pandemic

While the world embraced social distancing and self-isolating amid the spread of the coronavirus, the Military Sealift Command (MSC) required thousands of civilian mariners, or “civmars,” to stay on U.S. Navy ships, sharing tight quarters and cramped workspaces.

- Nick Keppler

Many of the mariners complained of a lack of personal protective equipment, like masks and gloves, and feared that the Navy personnel and Defense Department contractors — who embarked and disembarked freely — could come aboard with an infection that would spread COVID-19 and recreate the misery that befell some cruise ships and military vessels at the beginning of the outbreak.

The “gangway up” order that stranded the civmars was issued on March 21 by Rear Adm. Michael Wettlaufer, commander of the MSC, and as of press time an end date had not been announced. According to accounts from social media and civmars who spoke to Professional Mariner, those affected had no chance to prepare for the extended time away from home. Some were on ships docked a few miles from their homes in port cities and were not even able to move their cars from parking garages.

The order has driven a wedge into the 50-year partnership between the Navy and the civilian workforce that labors within the MSC to replenish U.S. military vessels around the world. Three mariners’ unions have filed grievances with the command over the order, but to no avail.