USCGC Sebago ( WHEC - 42 ) USCG " Sebago " ( WHEC - 42 ) was an " Owasco " class high endurance cutter which served with the US Coast Guard from 1945 to 1972 . Originally intended for World War II service , she was not commissioned until a month after the end of hostilities and consequently did not see combat until her deployment in the Vietnam War more than 20 years later . " Sebago " was built by Western Pipe & Steel at the company ' s San Pedro shipyard . Named after Sebago Lake , Maine , she was commissioned as a patrol gunboat with ID number WPG - 42 on 20 September 1945 . Her ID was later changed to WHEC - 42 ( HEC for " High Endurance Cutter " - the " W " signifies a Coast Guard vessel ) . First commission . " Sebago " was initially stationed at San Francisco , California but was transferred soon thereafter to Norfolk , Virginia where she served out of from 1 November 1945 to 1 June 1946 . Here she was used for law enforcement , ocean station , and search and rescue operations . She was then stationed at Boston , Massachusetts , from 1 June 1946 to 15 August 1947 and at Staten Island , New York , from 15 August 1947 to 31 October 1949 . Her duties remained similar to those she had while stationed at Norfolk and included weather patrols . From 10 January to 31 January 1948 she served at Weather Station Able . In April of that same year she was serving on Weather Station Dog , some 380 miles off Newfoundland . On the night of 27 April a C - 47 , MATS flight 6396 , ditched near the cutter and the Sebago rescued the C - 47s crew of four . " Sebago " was decommissioned on 31 October 1949 and stored at the Coast Guard Yard , Curtis Bay , Maryland . Second commission . " Sebago " was recommissioned on 17 December 1952 and stationed at Boston until 1 July 1954 . The vessel was subsequently moved to Mobile , Alabama , where she was used for law enforcement , search and rescue , and Campeche Patrol until July 1964 . This patrol was off the Campeche Banks near Mexico ' s Yucatan peninsula , where Mexican and U . S . fishing vessels fished for shrimp . A Coast Guard press release noted that " On patrol , the SEBAGO is ever ready to render medical aid , assist disabled boats through effecting repairs or provide a tow into port . An active boarding program is executed while on Campeche Patrol , evidenced by the 236 vessels [ boarded ] during fiscal year 1958 . " On 7 July 1959 the Sebago collided with the USNS " Croatan " at the U . S . Naval Station at Algiers , Louisiana . During fiscal year 1959 , the " Sebago " cruised some 20 , 000 miles on twelve patrols . She completed twenty - two assistance missions , saved a half - million dollars worth of shipping and obtained medical care for four sick or injured seaman . In addition to two training cruises for Coast Guard Reserve personnel with visits to Nassau and Jamaica , West Indies , on a visit to Texas for a shrimp festival , and the completion of one hundred forty - six vessel boardings during the fiscal year 1959 . The cutter also completed her annual overhaul in the Coast Guard Yard at Curtis Bay , Maryland , in February 1959 . In January , 1960 , " Sebago " completed underway refresher training at the Navy Fleet Training Group at Guantanamo Bay , Cuba , training undertaken by most cutters every two years . On 2 January 1962 , she towed the disabled M / V " Catalina " 310 miles off New Orleans , Louisiana . From July 1964 to 29 February 1972 , she was stationed at Pensacola , Florida , and again added ocean station duties to her agenda but she no longer served on Campeche Patrol . Her ocean station assignments included patrolling at stations Hotel , Bravo , Charlie , Echo , and Delta . On 15 October 1964 a fire broke out in her engine room that caused $ 50 , 000 worth of damage . The fire was extinguished by " Sebago " crewmen with assistance from the Pensacola Naval Air Station Fire Department , personnel from the USS Tweedy , the Sherman Field crash trucks , and the Air Station harbor tugs . In late 1964 , " Sebago " repaired the F / V " Robbie Dale " near Cayos Acras . On 18 December 1966 , she helped fight the fire at Frisco Pier , Pensacola . Vietnam War service . " Sebago " was refurbished at a cost of $ 179 , 000 at the Alabama Drydock and Shipbuilding Company from 29 September to 31 October 1968 in preparation for assignment to Vietnam . Combat operations " Sebago " was assigned to Coast Guard Squadron Three , Vietnam , serving in theatre from 2 March to 16 November 1969 , while under the command of CDR Dudley C . Goodwin , USCG . She was assigned to support Operation Market Time , including the interdiction of enemy supplies heading south by water and naval gunfire support [ NGS ] of units ashore . By July 1968 , she had conducted 12 NGS missions , destroying 31 structures , 15 bunkers , 2 sampans and 3 enemy " huts . " Humanitarian missions Combat duties were not all the cutter did . " Sebago " ' s medical staff , including the cutter ' s doctor , Public Health Service LT Lewis J . Wyatt , conducted humanitarian missions in Vietnam , treating over 400 villagers " for a variety of ills . " The crew visited the village of Co Luy , 80 miles south of Da Nang , and built an 18 - foot extension to a waterfront pier for the villagers . She also served as a supply ship for Coast Guard and Navy patrol boats serving in Vietnamese coastal waters . Return to peacetime duties . On 18 and 19 December 1969 , " Sebago " placed a damage - control party on board M / V " Jody Re " , brought the flooding under control , and stood by until a commercial tug arrived . On 20 December 1969 , she stood by the grounded Danish M / V " Helle " 25 miles northeast of Cabo Falso until a commercial tug arrived . On 21 June 1970 , while adjusting compasses , she grounded during a squall outside of Norfolk , VA . Decommissioning . " Sebago " was decommissioned on 29 February 1972 at Pensacola . Her commanding officer at that time , CDR James G . Wilcox , also retired that day . The cutter was turned over to the U . S . Maritime Administration in April of that same year , and scrapped in 1974 .