Waterfront

DAVE ROGERS’ IMAGES OF COAST GUARD TRAINING REVEAL THE GREAT LENGTHS PUBLIC SERVANTS GO TO KEEP US SAFE ON THE WATER.

Hard-charging images of a Coast Guard training session recently went viral. These photos tell more than 1,000 words.

Going viral isn’t new for Dave Rogers. Last summer, his video of a humpback whale surfacing perilously close to his kayak cascaded across the internet. And this winter, his series of images of a Coast Guard training session quickly captivated the nation’s attention.

Rogers, a civil engineer in the Bay Area, usually photographs wildlife—hence the viral whale. On December 13, 2018, he was headed to San Francisco’s Ocean Beach to capture surfers in 11foot swells. He saw three cameramen on a dune along Highway 1 and thought, “Okay, there’s surfers here.” He approached the gathering spot on a knee scooter, broken leg in tow, and peered over the dune. There were surfers, but that’s not what caught his eye.

Coast Guard Sector San Francisco has a team that specializes in rescuing people and watercraft in breaking surf. Two 47-foot boats, each with at least four crew members, respond to emer-