We made a
run under a Cat. 5 hurricane and missed our earlier slots for radio
communications due to its severity. At 400 feet, we were still getting
tossed around. On our last slot available to radio in or be considered
missing, we cam to periscope depth to pass the message. Due to possible
incorrect trim, we popped to the surface and ad to do an Emergency Dive
ops. I was opening a cabinet containing lab chemicals at the time and a
bottle of potassium hydroxide pellets popped out and shattered on the counter
edge resulting in chemical burns around my neck. By the time we got back
down to depth and safely sorting things out, we had a mess to clean up
throughout the sub. Fortunately no one was seriously
injured.
An old
trick of sailors to protect their vessels in the face of an approaching
hurricane was to actually sink their boats up a creek. This placed them
on the bottom in a narrow area and thus did not sustain much damage other then
having to pump them back out.
Respectfully,
Jay K.
Jeffries
Andros Is.,
Bahamas
Natura
nihil fit in frustra
-
Nature does nothing in vain