McAllister Towing docks the USNS Comfort in NYC

McAllister Towing is proud to participate in the response to the COVID-19 pandemic. The USNS COMFORT arrived in New York City on Monday March 30, 2020 and McAllister provided the equipment and maritime expertise in safely docking the hospital ship.

Docking Pilot Captain Robert Ellis was at the helm as the COMFORT arrived in New York Harbor. Capt.Ellis had the power of 4 tugs in support to bring the 900’ ship to Manhattan’s Cruise Terminal at Pier 90 in the Hudson River. The Z-drive tractor tugs CAPT. BRIAN A. MCALLISTER, AVA MCALLISTER, ALEX MCALLISTER and ELLEN MCALLISTER provided over 21,000 HP combined and, with their state-of-the-art propulsion, offered exceptional control in guiding the hospital ship safely to her berth.

The USNS COMFORT deployed from Norfolk, VA to help deal with the COVID-19 pandemic. The ship is equipped with 1,000 patient beds, 12 fully equipped operating rooms, eight intensive care unit beds, four radiology suites, up to 1,200 Navy medical and communications personnel and more than 70 civil service mariners. Her mission is to treat patients who do not have the virus, which frees up the land-based hospitals and national guard facilities to focus on COVID-19 in what is the epicenter of the virus in the United States.

Vice President of Operations Capt. Steven Kress said, “In these turbulent times, it is important for McAllister Towing to support our nation in every way possible. Whether it is a job like docking the USNS COMFORT or bringing in container ships daily to secure our nation’s supply chain, we answered the call as we have done for more than 150 years. I’m so proud of our team, especially the crews on our vessels that have continued to work safely and tirelessly during this extraordinary period in our lives. To all the essential workers including medical personnel, USCG personnel, military, law enforcement, grocery store employees and transportation workers, thank you!”

McAllister Towing is one of the oldest towing and transportation companies in the United States and has been providing its service to customers since Captain James McAllister founded the company in 1864 in New York City. The company operates a modern fleet of more than 60 tugs in a dozen ports covering the U.S. East Coast from Portland, Maine to San Juan, Puerto Rico.