Image via WikipediaSweepers was a common call over the ships general announcing system, the 1MC. several times a day from reveille at 0600 to lights out at 2200. The favorite being "Liberty Call! Liberty Call! Liberty commences for duty section 1, 3 and 4 to expire at 0730 Tuesday 09 March, Now Liberty Call!" One of the least was:
"This is a drill, this a drill! Fire! Fire! Fire! Class Charlie fire in compartment 2–152–3–L, Duty Section 2 respond, Flying Squad away. This is a drill! This is a drill!"
“2–152–3–L” is a compartment located on the second (2) deck with its forward boundary located at frame (152). It is the third (3) compartment to the starboard side of the ship’s centerline at that frame. It is either a living quarters, a medical or dental space or a passageway (L). All that information for a drill but you have to take it seriously. When you're out at sea there aren't many fire trucks around.
"All Hands Brace for Collision,"
At 7:48 pm Thursday, April 11, 1985 USS Coral Sea (CV-43) collided with the Ecuadorean oil tanker Napo about 45 miles southeast of Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. . Eleven aircraft airborne at the time of the accident were diverted to the Naval Air Station at Guantanamo Bay. There was a Soviet intelligence gathering ship shadowing Coral Sea, since her embarked Carrier Air Wing 13 (CVW-13) was equipped with the then new F/A-18A Hornet aircraft. There were no injuries to crew members of either ship, but the carrier had a 30-foot hole punched in the bow. The Napo spilled 7600 gallons of oil before making it to Guantanamo Bay for repairs. The Coral Sea limped backed from Cuba at 10 kts or less north to Norfolk Naval Shipyard for repairs.
Another time on board the USS Kearsarge operating off the coast of Bosnia we had been assigned the job of rescuing a downed Air Force Pilot. In the weather office we had been watching conditions carefully for the most opportune time to go in. I was sound asleep in my rack. sometime after midnight over the 1MC:
"This is the Captain speaking we've located Capt O'Grady and were going in"
My favorite 1MC call came on July 15th 1996 not so coincidentally my birthday. I'd been waiting for a couple of hours for my Division Officer and Chief to Come down to the quarterdeck. I got a bit tired of waiting . Grabbed the 1MC microphone and announced to the whole ship
"AG1 Retired Departing."
Walked off the brow, saluted the Ensign and made my way down the pier for the last time. Or so I thought.
Yikes, Tag! Having spent some time on the water, I don't believe I'd care to hear, "All hands brace for collision."
ReplyDeleteWhy wasn't it the last time?
ReplyDeleteHow did you remember these details so perfectly? Did you keep a log? Are those your pictures (minus the wikipedia one)? Are there more stories about being "in harm's way?"
Quite colorful! Stirs my curiosity.
Were you happy about "The Dude's" academy award? I was. I was especially happy to see how delightful he was with his wife.
This morning an article on Yahoo news caught my eye, so I took a look. Check this out for a slightly different lifestyle on the water! Makes your vessel look like a bathtub toy!
ReplyDeletehttp://finance.yahoo.com/family-home/article/109001/what-it-takes-to-keep-a-city-afloat?mod=family-travel
Wow, that's a big ship.
ReplyDeleteLimes You especially don't want to hear it 45 miles off the coast of Cuba. But even though the rip in the hull was large the damage control teams had the area sealed off and flooding stopped within 15 minutes of the accident.
Kass, You don't forget "all hands brace for collision." The stuff with Capt O'Grady's rescue is me paraphrasing what I think I heard while half asleep. I spent almost 8 years between the two ships. Quite often it was my job to make those calls. Fire drills were a daily occurrence in port and at sea. General Quarters was a routine training exercise at sea. Collisions weren't, but not that different from fighting a fire. You just do what you're trained to do.
Most of my time in the Navy was spent during peace time so we seldom were in harm's way. The collision was our ship's fault. But being ready for an accident or an act of war is a constant.
All pictures are courtesy of the US Navy from Wikipedia commons. many of the details were googled. I remember the events well but forget the details.
oh, sure, leave us hanging with "or so i thought!"
ReplyDeletestay tuned for the next episode of "tag's torture" or "the blog that ate my sleep!"
I'm with Kass, How do you remember so many details? I guess you kept a diary or log... if not, then I take my hat out in admiration for you unbelievable memory.
ReplyDeleteGreat way to retire, announcing it through the microphone to the entire ship!! but look like it wasn't a long retirement... I'm looking forward to read the next tale.
loveNlight
Gabi
14 years retired. Gabi. No phenomenal memory required. Just a way of life for a while. Thanks for stopping by.
ReplyDelete