| Author | Comment | ||
|---|---|---|---|
 heavycruiser |
The worst night on board. |
Lead | |
|
Posts: 6774 (02/26/08 08:37 PM) |
Doug and Edgar might choose a different night like the "Friendly Fire" but I consider the 30 continuous hours on GQ and Operation Seadragon to be the worst night on the ship. We went to General Quarters and I believe it was named "Condition X-Ray" in which all hatches are closed. For the next 30 hours we remained on stations. More to follow. This was during the '68 deployment.
|
||
|
heavycruiser |
Re: The worst night on board. | ||
|
Posts: 6774 (02/26/08 08:50 PM) |
As I said before we were buttoned up tight. Of course M and B Division stations were in the respective boiler and engine rooms. We headed north of the DMZ. Sea Dragon was in full force. The heat in the bolier and engine rooms began to rise. More to follow.
|
||
|
spectroid |
Re: The worst night on board. | ||
|
Posts: 2499 (02/28/08 09:20 AM) Chief Master At Arms |
I think the "worst night on board" for me was then we were in Typhoon Ealine. That was the only time I was seasick aboard ship. At first I was afraid that I was going to die, and then I was afraid that I was NOT going to die. The power of the sea is awsome, and to think that iron and steel would remain afloat is, on the surface (on the surface, get it?), ridiculous. Having to be strapped into our bunks so as not to be thrown across the compartment...very short chowlines, though... of course as your tray slid down the table, you never knew what would be in it when it slid back to you. I can only imagine what it was like for the snipes down in the holes.
Funny thing though, over the years, the bad times (as we called them...then) seem to have faded, and what is left are memories of the good times that we had with our shipmates. |
||
|
eljefe5 |
Re: The worst night on board. | ||
|
Posts: 304 (02/28/08 12:02 PM) |
I didn't actually get seasick, but I had that sinking feeling in my stomach (sinking, get it). I keep getting the vision of those oil tankers that were shown on TV breaking in half.
|
||
|
heavycruiser |
Re: The worst night on board. | ||
|
Posts: 6774 (02/28/08 07:21 PM) |
That was a bad night as well. More to come on the 30 hour GQ.
|
||
|
heavycruiser |
Re: The worst night on board. | ||
|
Posts: 6774 (02/28/08 11:42 PM) |
For a time all ventilation was shut off and we had to button the collar and sleeves on the dungaree work shirt. Also the ship was stopped for a time. The machinery began to run hot with the hatches closed and the vents off. The crew pulled out fire hoses and ran water over the hot bearings. Finally the OK was given to open the vents some air began to move again. Even after that it was 118 degrees on the lover level of the fire room. As time wore on it became more and more miserable. More to follow.
|
||
|
heavycruiser |
worst cont. | ||
|
Posts: 6774 (02/29/08 01:18 PM) |
After some time the Division began to rotate the men on duty to get some rest . If one can rest in 188 degree heat. The cooks send down K rations for chow and at least with all the hot pipes in the fire room one could get a hot meal. Just punch a hole in the can set on the steam pipe and a chow was forthcoming. The main problem was not food but water. We were use to the conditions and the climate but not for such an extended time. After about 15 hours the Division got permission from the bridge to let half of the crews have time on the mess decks to relax and rehydrate.
|
||
|
heavycruiser |
Re: worst cont. | ||
|
Posts: 6774 (03/01/08 12:38 AM) |
A typho on the last entry. The temp was 118 and not 188.The mess decks were cool as compared to the fire room and there were buckets of ice water. The break crew stayed near Repair 5. During the break one could cool down and get a brief rest from the heat and noise except that the 8" guns boomed a lot during this time "Up North." What ever was going on above deck was obviously heavy and intense.
More to follow and a conclusion.
|
||
|
heavycruiser |
Re: worst cont. | ||
|
Posts: 6774 (03/01/08 10:50 PM) |
At the 24 hour mark the guns were still booming and the Division was two hours in the fire room and two hours on the mess decks. At this juncture the Division got permission from the bridge to open the hatches and let more ventilation into the fire and engine rooms. As stated before the lower level ran at 118 degrees. There were, however, men on the upper level, one which worked the very large check valve which fed water into the boiler. Not only did this man have a very physical job, hot air rises and he got all of it passing upward. This watch area was also rotated due to the extreme heat and exertion. The conclusion to follow.
|
||
|
Ray Andersen |
Re: worst cont. | ||
|
Posts: 5300 (03/02/08 02:05 AM) Chief Master At Arms |
Speaking of heat rising,if all of the hatches were closed at GQ,wasn't the whole ship Hot? Convection and all,I would think you could bake bread in your bunk! I remember GQ like that during the Cuban missile crisis,we were at GQ more then off..at that time I was in after steering and that really sucked too. Would ya do it again? I thought so!
Ray |
||
|
heavycruiser |
Re: worst cont. | ||
|
Posts: 6774 (03/02/08 09:18 AM) |
True Ray. The entire ship was very hot until they modified GQ. My conclusion soon.
|
||
|
heavycruiser |
Re: worst cont. | ||
|
Posts: 6774 (03/02/08 11:03 AM) |
At or around the 30 hours mark the ship was secured from GQ. B Division relieved the current watch and let the other men secure. The work uniform was a uniform only in the academic sense, it had once been blue and made of cotton. After 30 hours of oil, grease, dirt and sweat it showed very little blue color. Work shoes and socks were soaked in black and lube oil. The entire uniform including shoes was discarded. The showers felt good as one could clean off all the grime. Once that task was completed there was four hours of sleep. Conclusion: I wonder to this day what operation the ship was on? Why did we stop at some juncture? After chatting with some of the deck crew they said we had shelled the Mui Ron Pass, Vinh and the Hanoi/Haiphong complex. And Doug mentioned that at one period during an "Up North" deployment he actually saw the ship pick up what may have been Special Forces/CIA. Someday it would be interesting to finally know what fully transpired during that 30 hours. The End.
|
||
|
gsk1 |
Re: worst cont. | ||
|
Posts: 1260 (04/26/08 07:26 AM) |
The worst night or nights I spent on board was the time we left Gibralter and hit that heavy storm and had to sleep tied down in our bunks. I was just a little bit jumpy. It is funny how you react to things. If everyone is calm, you are calm. If everyone is scared out of their gourd, that's you. Everone was scared out of their gourds. I would just hang on and the vibration was terrible. The S-1 division sleeping compartment was over one of the screws and you could "feel" the screws coming out of the water and then coming down and biting the seas. God, the things we did.
|
||
|
Ray Andersen |
Re: worst night | ||
|
Posts: 5300 (04/26/08 08:10 AM) Chief Master At Arms |
During the Cuban blockade,we had GQ alot,and I went to aftersteering,a tube that went straight down to the rudder was located aft in the signalmen's quarters.I had this fear of a torpedo taking out the rudder and being trapped down in that hole,it was a scary time for sure.
Ray |
||
|
gsk1 |
Re: worst night | ||
|
Posts: 1260 (04/26/08 11:22 PM) |
some of my worst days and nights happened when I was the bow hookman on the liberty launch. Especially when the weather was rough and the seas choppy, they would be throwing up all over the place and I would be kneeling up front like a little monkey bouncing up and down., laughing at them. But whoa be unto me if I missed that cleat with my pole on the first pass. Then the laugh was on me as I had to clean up the mess they left behind.
|
||
|
bluenose |
Re: worst cont. | ||
|
Posts: 509 (04/27/08 06:56 AM) King Walt |
I recall being up in the North Atlantic during those NATO exercises we had. As big as our "Boston" was, we were being thrown pretty bad as I remember. I had the watch down in "Crypto" and it was (in my opinion) the worse weather we had while I was aboard. It was shortly before we arrived in Amsterdam(Late September, early October of 1960)...In fact, if you go to another posting, (which Doug was kind enough to post a picture for me) of us pulling into Amsterday. The "Boston" looked really beat up from that storm...
Walt |
||
|
Ray Andersen |
Re: worst cont. | ||
|
Posts: 5300 (04/27/08 08:48 AM) Chief Master At Arms |
I remember seeing that picture that you sent in,I wondered what happened to the sidecleaners.You have to admit the North Atlantic does not like ships on her in the fall and winter months!
|
||
|
Chief Willie |
Re: worst cont. | ||
|
Posts: 62 (04/27/08 03:43 PM) Chief Master At Arms |
As for us 'Squids' we would just drop down another 100' or so and settle back with our coke & cookies while we watched another flick in the galley and pitied the poor suckers who had to be up in it
|
||
|
gsk1 |
Re: worst cont. | ||
|
Posts: 1260 (04/27/08 04:59 PM) |
anyone remember what the posting was on the ship pullling into Amsterdam?
|
||
|
bluenose |
Re: worst cont. | ||
|
Posts: 509 (04/28/08 07:49 AM) King Walt |
Jerry...
To see the picture of us pulling into Amsterdam on October 3, 1960, go to "Roundtable Discussions" and then scroll down to "USS Boston CA69 (CAG1) Photos"...The picture is on page "1" of that posting... Walt |
||
|
gsk1 |
Re: worst cont. | ||
|
Posts: 1260 (04/28/08 10:43 AM) |
thanks
|
||
