Served as a Radio Technician 1st Class aboard USS Hull which was ordered to join a 3rd Fleet refueling group, departing 20 November 1944, to rendezvous with fast carrier striking forces in the Philippine Sea, at the instructions of South Pacific Commander William Halsey Jr.
Fueling operations with the fast, carrier strike-force in the Philippine Sea began on 17 December 1944, but increasingly heavy seas forced cancellation later that day. The fueling group became engulfed next day in an approaching typhoon, designated Cobra, with barometers falling to very low levels and winds increasing above 90 knots.
After Hull was ordered to change course to 140 degrees, ostensibly by Admiral Halsey "to see what they were doing,"[2] the wind increased to over 100 knots. At about 11:00 hours, on 18 December, Hull became locked "in irons", in the trough of the mountainous sea. Unable to steer with the north wind on her port beam, yawing between 80 and 100 degrees, the whaleboat and depth charges were swept off. As the roll increased to 70 degrees, she was pinned down by a gust as the sea flooded the pilot house and poured down the stacks. All hands worked feverishly to maintain integrity and keep the ship afloat during the heavy rolls, but finally, in the words of her commander, Lt. Cmdr James A. Marks, "the ship remained over on her side at an angle of 80 degrees or more as the water flooded into her upper structures. I remained on the port wing of the bridge until the water flooded up to me, then I stepped off into the water as the ship rolled over on her way down".[3] A later finding was that additional sea water ballast could possibly have helped the ship recover from the 70-degree roll.[4]
Reportedly, some time before Hull became locked "in irons," some officers had debated whether to remove captain Marks from his command in order to turn the ship to a safer course, but the executive officer, Greil Gerstley, refused to do so on the grounds that there had never been a mutiny on a US Navy ship. This incident provided novelist Herman Wouk with the inspiration for the climax of his novel The Caine Mutiny, in which a captain is actually relieved of his duties by his officers in the course of Typhoon Cobra.
Rescue work by USS Tabberer and other ships of the fleet in the days that followed saved the lives of 7 officers, including the captain of the ship, and 55 enlisted sailors.[5] 11 officers of the Hull, including the executive officer, and 191 enlisted sailors perished in the sea.[5] In all, 790 men of the Fleet lost their lives in the typhoon.[5]
Fueling operations with the fast, carrier strike-force in the Philippine Sea began on 17 December 1944, but increasingly heavy seas forced cancellation later that day. The fueling group became engulfed next day in an approaching typhoon, designated Cobra, with barometers falling to very low levels and winds increasing above 90 knots.
After Hull was ordered to change course to 140 degrees, ostensibly by Admiral Halsey "to see what they were doing,"[2] the wind increased to over 100 knots. At about 11:00 hours, on 18 December, Hull became locked "in irons", in the trough of the mountainous sea. Unable to steer with the north wind on her port beam, yawing between 80 and 100 degrees, the whaleboat and depth charges were swept off. As the roll increased to 70 degrees, she was pinned down by a gust as the sea flooded the pilot house and poured down the stacks. All hands worked feverishly to maintain integrity and keep the ship afloat during the heavy rolls, but finally, in the words of her commander, Lt. Cmdr James A. Marks, "the ship remained over on her side at an angle of 80 degrees or more as the water flooded into her upper structures. I remained on the port wing of the bridge until the water flooded up to me, then I stepped off into the water as the ship rolled over on her way down".[3] A later finding was that additional sea water ballast could possibly have helped the ship recover from the 70-degree roll.[4]
Reportedly, some time before Hull became locked "in irons," some officers had debated whether to remove captain Marks from his command in order to turn the ship to a safer course, but the executive officer, Greil Gerstley, refused to do so on the grounds that there had never been a mutiny on a US Navy ship. This incident provided novelist Herman Wouk with the inspiration for the climax of his novel The Caine Mutiny, in which a captain is actually relieved of his duties by his officers in the course of Typhoon Cobra.
Rescue work by USS Tabberer and other ships of the fleet in the days that followed saved the lives of 7 officers, including the captain of the ship, and 55 enlisted sailors.[5] 11 officers of the Hull, including the executive officer, and 191 enlisted sailors perished in the sea.[5] In all, 790 men of the Fleet lost their lives in the typhoon.[5]
Served as a Radio Technician 1st Class aboard USS Hull which was ordered to join a 3rd Fleet refueling group, departing 20 November 1944, to rendezvous with fast carrier striking forces in the Philippine Sea, at the instructions of South Pacific Commander William Halsey Jr.
Fueling operations with the fast, carrier strike-force in the Philippine Sea began on 17 December 1944, but increasingly heavy seas forced cancellation later that day. The fueling group became engulfed next day in an approaching typhoon, designated Cobra, with barometers falling to very low levels and winds increasing above 90 knots.
After Hull was ordered to change course to 140 degrees, ostensibly by Admiral Halsey "to see what they were doing,"[2] the wind increased to over 100 knots. At about 11:00 hours, on 18 December, Hull became locked "in irons", in the trough of the mountainous sea. Unable to steer with the north wind on her port beam, yawing between 80 and 100 degrees, the whaleboat and depth charges were swept off. As the roll increased to 70 degrees, she was pinned down by a gust as the sea flooded the pilot house and poured down the stacks. All hands worked feverishly to maintain integrity and keep the ship afloat during the heavy rolls, but finally, in the words of her commander, Lt. Cmdr James A. Marks, "the ship remained over on her side at an angle of 80 degrees or more as the water flooded into her upper structures. I remained on the port wing of the bridge until the water flooded up to me, then I stepped off into the water as the ship rolled over on her way down".[3] A later finding was that additional sea water ballast could possibly have helped the ship recover from the 70-degree roll.[4]
Reportedly, some time before Hull became locked "in irons," some officers had debated whether to remove captain Marks from his command in order to turn the ship to a safer course, but the executive officer, Greil Gerstley, refused to do so on the grounds that there had never been a mutiny on a US Navy ship. This incident provided novelist Herman Wouk with the inspiration for the climax of his novel The Caine Mutiny, in which a captain is actually relieved of his duties by his officers in the course of Typhoon Cobra.
Rescue work by USS Tabberer and other ships of the fleet in the days that followed saved the lives of 7 officers, including the captain of the ship, and 55 enlisted sailors.[5] 11 officers of the Hull, including the executive officer, and 191 enlisted sailors perished in the sea.[5] In all, 790 men of the Fleet lost their lives in the typhoon.[5]
Fueling operations with the fast, carrier strike-force in the Philippine Sea began on 17 December 1944, but increasingly heavy seas forced cancellation later that day. The fueling group became engulfed next day in an approaching typhoon, designated Cobra, with barometers falling to very low levels and winds increasing above 90 knots.
After Hull was ordered to change course to 140 degrees, ostensibly by Admiral Halsey "to see what they were doing,"[2] the wind increased to over 100 knots. At about 11:00 hours, on 18 December, Hull became locked "in irons", in the trough of the mountainous sea. Unable to steer with the north wind on her port beam, yawing between 80 and 100 degrees, the whaleboat and depth charges were swept off. As the roll increased to 70 degrees, she was pinned down by a gust as the sea flooded the pilot house and poured down the stacks. All hands worked feverishly to maintain integrity and keep the ship afloat during the heavy rolls, but finally, in the words of her commander, Lt. Cmdr James A. Marks, "the ship remained over on her side at an angle of 80 degrees or more as the water flooded into her upper structures. I remained on the port wing of the bridge until the water flooded up to me, then I stepped off into the water as the ship rolled over on her way down".[3] A later finding was that additional sea water ballast could possibly have helped the ship recover from the 70-degree roll.[4]
Reportedly, some time before Hull became locked "in irons," some officers had debated whether to remove captain Marks from his command in order to turn the ship to a safer course, but the executive officer, Greil Gerstley, refused to do so on the grounds that there had never been a mutiny on a US Navy ship. This incident provided novelist Herman Wouk with the inspiration for the climax of his novel The Caine Mutiny, in which a captain is actually relieved of his duties by his officers in the course of Typhoon Cobra.
Rescue work by USS Tabberer and other ships of the fleet in the days that followed saved the lives of 7 officers, including the captain of the ship, and 55 enlisted sailors.[5] 11 officers of the Hull, including the executive officer, and 191 enlisted sailors perished in the sea.[5] In all, 790 men of the Fleet lost their lives in the typhoon.[5]
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Entered the service from Illinois.
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