Unless it makes a daring rescue, the U.S. Coast Guard mostly operates out of sight, patrolling ports and, more often than not, taken for granted by the public.

But a new report from the Government Accountability Office revealed something startling. The Coast Guard is stretched thin. And the problem is about to get worse.

“I think it’s assuming too much the Coast Guard itself is going to come out and say ‘Sorry folks, we can’t protect you,’” said Tim Riley, an attorney who has spent the last five years investigating the dangers of liquefied natural gas.

“The Coast Guard has had difficulty meeting its own self-imposed requirements for security,” the GAO report said.

In April, a new LNG terminal in Freeport will start receiving tankers. It’s the first new facility of its kind in 20 years and the only one in Texas.

The Coast Guard says protecting LNG, which is a highly compressed liquid and even more explosive than gas and oil, is a top priority.

With eight more LNG terminals planned from South Texas to Lake Charles, the Coast Guard will become even more pinched, though no one has said areas will go unprotected.

“We have started focusing on protecting air travel,” Riley added. “But yet our harbors are very, very risky right now. We should shore it all up before major tragedies start happening in the country.”

Tragedies that are likely with the Coast Guard having to protect more assets without more resources.

The Coast Guard’s Houston Galveston Sector confirmed it met late last week about this issue.

A spokesman said the Houston Galveston Sector will get 116 new positions to protect LNG facilities from Freeport to Lake Charles.

The GAO said there are no specific warnings, but the threat of a terrorist attack on tankers is likely to persist.