SAUSALITO -- Leadership of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers San Francisco District changed today when LTC Travis J. Rayfield was sworn in as the district’s 55th commander.
At a morning military ceremony at the Bay Model Visitor Center here, LTC John. C. Morrow relinquished command of the district he has led since 2014. Rayfield assumed command after having most recently served as the Professor of Military Science at the University of California, Santa Barbara. Recent operational assignments have included platoon leader and executive officer in the 14th Engineer Battalion, Fort Lewis, WA; battalion logistics officer and company commander in the 1st Engineer Battalion, 1st Brigade, 1st Infantry Division, Fort Riley, Kansas. His military experience also includes deployments to Iraq and Afghanistan. Rayfield holds a Master of Engineering in Environmental Engineering Sciences.
At Friday’s ceremony, South Pacific Division Commander Col. D. Peter Helmlinger credited LTC Morrow and his team for significant improvements in the San Francisco District during his three years as commander.
“The district executed nearly half a billion dollars’ worth of engineering construction across Northern California. This has reduced flood risk, it has ensured navigation and it has restored the environment.” All of this, Helmlinger said, “was done in one of the most diverse and economically important and environmentally sensitive areas of the country.”
The Corps’ San Francisco District has served the Bay Area since 1866, providing support for 22 federal shipping channels and the region’s $68 billion annual maritime industry, and is the federal agency responsible for keeping the Bay’s navigation channels free of debris. Its largely civilian workforce operates two major dams that provide drinking water, recreation and mitigation against the risk of flooding. The district also oversees the largest wetland restoration projects on the West Coast.