I’m sure submariner duty is tough, but this does raise questions about all the subs that didn’t win the award:

SILVERDALE, Wash. (NNS) — USS Nebraska (SSBN 739) (Blue) received an award from Submarine Group 9 on April 20 for having no violations involving driving under the influence (DUI) in the past two years. “I think it’s great we got this award,” said Information Systems Technician 3rd Class (SS) Eddie Rich from Nebraska’s radio division. “A lot of other commands are having problems with being DUI-free, but we are supporting each other to keep it that way.” Nebraska leadership puts out the word about the “Safe Ride” program, which provides a hotline Sailors can call to get a ride in a duty vehicle from anywhere in the region if they have been drinking. The command’s approach is to remind the crew to drink responsibly and provide an option like “Safe Ride” to get home safe. A lot of Nebraska chiefs also have made their own phone numbers available if a Nebraska Sailor needs a way home, with no questions asked.

Update: Several readers say this is a big deal:

Jonah,
Its not just submarine duty. Every command that I have been in and know
of has a problem w/ this. I don’t know if its because military life is
harsher or maybe its because we actually track it as opposed to say NR,
who might not ever know if you got a DUI. The first people the police
call when our Sailors are caught driving under the influence is the
command.
Then there is also the fact that you’re dealing w/ a large number of
people. A submarine crew has over 100 crew members assigned so all it
takes is one person (less then 1% of the command) to ruin it for
everyone.

And:

DUIs are nowhere near the huge problem they used to be in the Navy, though it is still a concern. All commands are required to promote Safe Ride type programs and it is fairly commonplace for the Chiefs to put out their home phone numbers to their Sailors, just in case they need a ride. Why don’t all of the ships, boats, and shore stations make it two years without a DUI? Well, that has a lot to do with the demographics of the Sailors (young), the abundant availability of and easy access to alcohol near military bases, and the fact that many of the folks caught DUI are busted at the gate, coming back on base to get to their quarters. Sobriety checkpoints are pretty common on military bases, especially on three-day weekends. I was in the Navy 23 years (retired as a CWO3 in late 2004) and I was never at a duty station that didn’t have at least one DUI while I was there, including a 2 ½ year stint in Japan. The overwhelming majority of those DUI arrests occurred on-base. By the way, the Navy is also very serious about prosecuting DUIs. While a first DUI may get a Sailor a very expensive ticket and very expensive insurance from the civilian world, it will also get them a guaranteed Captain’s Mast (Article 15 of the UCMJ – Non-Judicial Punishment) and a reduction in rank from the Navy world. It takes several years for a Sailor’s career to recover from getting a DUI, which is not the case in the civilian world.