Point Highland was stationed at
Little Creek, Virginia, from the time of her commissioning in 1962 to 1965. She was used for law enforcement and search and rescue operations. On 16 June 1965, she stood by the Norwegian freighter
Blue Master and following a collision off
Cape Henry. She transferred to
Crisfield, Maryland in 1965 to replace the which had been assigned to duty in Vietnam. On 22 February 1967,
Point Highland assisted following a collision between motor vessels
Bodoro and
Beaver State on the
Potomac River. On 22 February 1967, she towed the disabled tug
Hay-de and a barge following a collision with motor vessel
Hellenic Halcyon 10 miles north of
Smith Point. On 21 January 1970, she located and towed a barge containing 1,200 tons of
sulfuric acid four miles northwest of
Tangier Island until she was relieved by a commercial tug, an operation for which she was awarded her first
Coast Guard Unit Commendation. On 23 March 1970, she recovered a Navy
LCM that had been abandoned in the Chesapeake Bay. She was ordered to
Key West, Florida, for temporary duty during the
Mariel Boatlift, in the summer of 1980. While assigned to this operation she assisted seven refugee boats and was awarded the
Humanitarian Service Medal.
Point Highland transferred to
Chincoteague, Virginia, in April 1981. She made her first
drug bust later that year on 2–4 October when she seized a pleasure yacht on the
Chesapeake Bay that was smuggling 10 tons of marijuana. During a winter storm in February, 1983, the cutter was called out to assist the disabled fishing vessel
Theodora. At the same time, 30 miles east of Chincoteague, the 605-foot coal freighter
SS Marine Electric reported that she was taking on water. After escorting the
Theodora to Chincoteague Inlet,
Point Highland raced to answer the
Marine Electric's distress call. Battling 30-foot seas, 40 knot winds, and below-freezing temperatures, she arrived on scene and began what proved to be a futile search for survivors.
Point Highland then recovered 17 bodies. She was awarded her second Unit Commendation for these actions. On 26 December 1985
Point Highland again distinguished herself in a marathon rescue case by saving four persons from the distressed sailing vessel
Canisvliet 336 miles off of
Oregon Inlet, North Carolina. She battled 25-foot seas and 50 knot winds to effect the rescue which took 77 hours to complete, and at that time this was the longest offshore rescue by a WPB in Fifth Coast Guard District history. For her actions with this rescue she was awarded the
Coast Guard Meritorious Unit Commendation. On 17 July 1987, she towed the disabled fishing vessel
Betty J safely to Chincoteague. She participated in the military exercises Solid Shield '89 and Ocean Venture '90. During this same time she escorted the carrier into Norfolk, escorted three Soviet warships during their port call to Norfolk, and conducted
maritime law enforcement operations with the
Virginia Air National Guard. From 1997 to 2001,
Point Highland was stationed at
Cape May, New Jersey but during
Operation Desert Storm she was assigned to patrol a security zone at the
Sunny Point Military Ocean Terminal, in
Southport, North Carolina. She spent three weeks in March, 1991 on the
Cape Fear River protecting this vital depot. She was awarded her third Unit Commendation and a second
Special Operations Service Ribbon for this operation. She then earned two Meritorious Unit Commendations and a Special Operations Service Ribbon for "aggressive and productive maritime law enforcement operations." From August 1991 to August 1992
Point Highland initiated 35 Federal fisheries cases, six zero tolerance drug cases, one illegal immigrant case, one boating while intoxicated cases and apprehended five fugitives from justice.
Point Highland was decommissioned on 24 July 2001 and transferred to the
Republic of Trinidad and Tobago at a dockside ceremony in Cape May. She was renamed the
Bacolet Point. ==References==