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Former YHS student aids in Gulf oil spill clean-up

Tiffany Tuell

(Updated: Thursday, September 02, 2010, 12:00 AM)

A former Yosemite High School student and long-time ship captain has played a major role in the clean-up of the Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill in the Gulf of Mexico.

Captain Keith W. Schultz, 50, dropped out of high school, joined the United States Navy where he got his GED, and now works for Helix Energy Solutions Group, one of the private industry companies working to clean up the largest deep-water oil spill in the history of the world.

Since his Navy retirement, Schultz has worked on vessels that have provided deep-water construction, diver support and drilling. He has sailed around the world several times and visited many countries including North Korea, South Africa, Georgia in the Black Sea, Iceland and Greenland.

Schultz is now the captain of the Q4000 -- a mobile offshore drilling unit -- with 140 personnel that helped cap the oil leak and is now working on clean-up.

Schultz said being sent to the site of the world's worst deep-water oil spill and seeing the devastation was not a big surprise because he had already had a close-up look at the spill when the event first occurred.

"Q4000 was about 30 miles away from the Horizon on that unfortunate night, and we were able to see the glow from the inferno," Schultz said. "Within days of the sinking of Horizon, Helix and Q4000 were asked by BP to join the effort. Because of the unique design of the rig, lifting capacities of our cranes and specialized training of our crews, we were most suited to accomplish the diverse number of tasks necessary to mitigate the spill and finally seal the well."

The Q4000 was assisted by vessels BJ Blue Dolphin and HOS Centerline and their efforts stopped the well by pumping it with cement to seal it indefinitely.

"The satisfaction of being the captain and OIM of the vessel who accomplished the sealing task is immense, but I owe the success of the operations to the outstanding crews of Q4000 and unparalleled support we received from BP and the countless companies and engineers ashore who planned and coordinated our efforts," he said. "The entire team effort has no equal in modern history."

Schultz said that while many people have focused on the pollution, he has had his own goal in the clean-up process.

"I have thought of the men who were lost on that fateful night and how important it is to their legacy and that of the families to quickly seal the blowout and end the oil spill," he said.

Schultz's nautical career began when he joined the U.S. Navy in 1977 at the age of 17. After a 20-year Navy career as a Senior Chief Petty Officer, he retired and began looking for a career with private shipping companies.

"This had been my life's goal -- being a Merchant Marine Officer," Schultz said. "Eventually, after several long years of sailing, I obtained my first Ships' Master position on MV Geysir, a sailing liner between the United States and Iceland, and, in 2005, I joined Q4000 as master and have remained there ever since."

Schultz also has an undergraduate degree in business as well as a master's degree in business. He has been on the Q4000 almost five years and hopes to one day pursue a doctorate degree in organization management and move his career to land, still working for Helix Energy Solutions.

"I enjoy the company and see a long career in my future," he said.

Schultz now lives in Tennessee with his wife of 29 years, Kathy, a former deputy sheriff from San Diego. They have two children, Adam, 29, and Jessica, 27, and 9 grandchildren.

They spend their spare time boating and fishing, traveling, RVing, riding their Harley Davidson motorcycle and spending time with family. Schultz is also spending his land time learning how to fly and hopes to have his private pilot's license by next spring.

He is the son of Rod and Pat Schultz, former owners of Oakhurst Cleaners. His brother and sister-in-law, Kevin and Pam O'Neill, are long-time residents of Oakhurst.

"Being a native Californian, I never thought I'd ever relocate," Schultz said. "However, having seen the mountains of Tennessee -- Kathy's home state -- I felt just as comfortable as I did living in Oakhurst with the Sierra Nevada mountains and decided to make our home in Tennessee."

Below is a link to a brief interview Schultz gave the Associated Press on behalf of his company -- Helix Energy Solutions and BP -- while on board the Q4000.

http://video.ap.org/?f=None&pid=BlEvQdggDtMmSuoyhAqS824zwqhR84Ji