SAVANNAH, Ga. (AP) - A federal agency is putting two new boats to work on the Georgia coast after naming them for fallen soldiers.
The Army Corps of Engineers on Thursday held dedication ceremonies for the pair of survey boats used to ensure Georgia's harbors in Savannah and Brunswick remain free from obstructions.
One vessel was named in honor of Army Staff Sgt. Vernon W. Martin of Savannah, who died along with seven other members of his Army unit fighting the Taliban in Afghanistan in October 2009.
The other boat was named for Army Spc. Christopher J. Holland of Brunswick, a medic killed in December 2003 when his unit was ambushed in Iraq.
The Army Corps says the idea for naming the vessels came from one of its boat captains, Jim Bodenrader, who wanted to honor military service members with local ties to coastal Georgia.