Storm in The North Pacific

by Lee S. Wilbur

“Cap’n, Cap’n, the ship is cracking in two. Just forward of the house. There’s a big crack every time she rolls.”

The year was 1951, Korean war was in full swing and the demand for military hardware and supplies were pressing. Maine Maritime Academy graduate, twenty three year old Larry Johnson, was on his first ship headed for Yokohama, Japan, in an old World War II Liberty Ship, labeled “Throwaway Ships”, designed to make one-way crossings with war materiel to either France or the South Pacific.

“They were built so inexpensively and so quick,” Larry says,” That the ships paid for themselves with just the one crossing. At the height of production 3 liberty ships and later the larger Victory ships were launched every day among the 18 shipyards in the United States. They were being built in such numbers, the average was 42 days to completion, there was no way the Germans could sink them all.”

The Liberty ship was absolutely the vessel for it’s time. Designed by the British and contracted to be built in the United States, at 441 ft. overall with a 56-ft. beam, rivetted steel hull and a 2500 hp reciprocating steam engine, the Liberties would do a stately 10-11 knots. Except in storm conditions. Put into perspective, three 350hp outboard motors on the stern of today’s go fast boats of 29-30 feet would almost equal half of the horsepower of the 441' Liberty.

“We were less than a week out of San Francisco, taking the Northern route, when we received a weather report from Kodiak, Alaska,” Larry recalls, “There were three severe weather patterns converging on our course. ‘The Perfect Storm’ in the making. Two days later, we were in the thick of it. Now, with 2500 hp, it’s difficult to keep a “Liberty” on course going before the seas or into it. Speed was governed by signalling the engine room from the bridge and the engineer would use the throttle for more or less power. More power trying to pull out of a broach going before or climbing a mountain size wave going into it. Then, if and when the prop came out of water with nothing to hold it back, there would be a runaway propellor situation and rpms would scream. A good engineer could time the waves and be ready to slack off the throttle as the ship topped the wave and was getting ready to slide down the other side. Today’s ships thankfully have automatic governors.”

Normal trip time for the 5400 mile run to Yokohama would be 20-21 days. This wouldn’t be happening with the SS Hoosier, owned and operated by States Marine. “By the end of the second day, seas coming in over the buried bow had flooded the forward chain locker which housed all of our chain, lines, and hawsers, some of which were 6" in diameter. The lines had been torn off the tarps over #1 and #2 holds and #1 was flooding. Water was also coming in through one of the large cowls forward of the “boom house” and finding it’s way into the engine room, placing more weight at the bow and making it more difficult for the Liberty to raise her bow, adding pressure to the hull amidship.”

One of the Major flaws in construction of the Liberties was their transverse construction. Built in component parts for efficiency, they carried almost no longitudinal beams. A problem not addressed until many of the survivors were reactivated after the war. Some 200 were lost during WWII to U-Boats or storm conditions. With storms as the cause, the Liberties were prone to the hull cracking just forward of the Pilot House. In retrofitting (the Liberties sailed for many years after the war), as Larry learned while working at the Portland Shipyard one summer, a Longitudinal beam 18" wide by one and one half inches thick was welded along the upper sides of the hull for stiffness and load bearing ability. Unfortunately, the SS Hoosier had not been retrofitted.

“As the storm began to abate somewhat, although the seas remained very high and confused, we were able to begin work to save the ship. On the stern there’s a large towing cable connected to a winch, so we ran the end of the cable forward of the pilot house and secured it to a bollard. Then we winched it until the side of the hull slowly worked back together and the crack began to close. With the crack closed we ran more cables and line wherever possible to keep her bound together. All this being done while trying not to be swept over the side.It was an experience I hope I never have to go through again. Each time the Hoosier rolled it was like being airborne”

“Though the wind had dropped off, this was no “tropical storm”. Larry says, “Seas were still raging and it was all anyone could do to get around the ship. As time wore slowly on it became apparent that something had come loose in #3 hold...... To be continued

 

• R E C I P E •

This “old iron skillet” perscription for potatoes is both simple, and one of the best potato dishes I’ve ever done. I think you’ll agree when you’ve tried it.

An iron skillet, sized for how many portions you’ll need. Preferably “Red” skinned Potatoes. Can of good evaporated milk, Medium to large Vidalia (or sweet) onion, butter, black pepper, and cooking oil (I happened to use safflower).

Cut the onion in very thin slices and the potatoes in approx. 1/8 inch slices. Oil the skillet liberally. Start with a layer of potatoes first, then a layer of onions, and repeat. Place in a 450 deg oven for about 10-15 minutes till the potatoes just start to cook. Remove and add enough evaporated milk to come up the skillet about half way. Dot with butter, give a few scrunches of ground pepper and salt and return to the oven. Cook for 15 minutes longer and lower heat to 400 degrees for another 10-15 minutes until fork tender. Sweet.

Fair Winds and Good Roads

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