Spiegel Grove hull feature: what are they??

[Capt Jim Wyatt]

no one was in danger when she went down

Actually that is not true. She sank prematurely and there were guys on her decks scrambling to get themselves and gear off before she went under.....upside down with her bow sticking up out of the water.

The sinking was a strokefest.

 

[The Chairman]

Actually that is not true. She sank prematurely and there were guys on her decks scrambling to get themselves and gear off before she went under.....upside down with her bow sticking up out of the water.

The sinking was a strokefest.

Gear was lost, and there was indeed screaming. The person responsible has since passed away. But there were plenty of support vessels around to get everyone off. In any event, they had intended to scuttle her.

 

[Wookie]

Slate passed away?

 

[The Chairman]

Slate passed away?

No... he's not the one who opened up the holes that made it sink prematurely. Ask him about it and he minces no words about what happened and how. When I lived in the Keys, I verified his version a few times over.

 

[Capt Jim Wyatt]

In all fairness there was a problem that no one on that team could have known about.
There was a CASREP (Casualty Report) on file with NAVSEA documenting a breach in the bulkhead between #1 and #2 machinery spaces.

A copy of the CASREP was found in a desk that was removed from her during cleanup/readying for sinking, but this piece of paper was not found or understood (I am not sure which) until after she went turtle.

What this means is that when the ship was being progressively flooded to maintain trim; water was unknowingly going into one machinery space that was not intended.

*IF* the team had of used a qualified US Navy Diving/Salvage officer they probably would have learned of that CASREP and been able to avoid the problems that occurred.

<Soapbox>There was a qualified US Navy Diving/Salvage officer who lived 70 miles away and who had successfully sank a 220 foot long artificial reef off the coast of Waikiki (M/V Sea Tiger) a few years earlier, and offered his help. But alas these civilians with no salvage experience felt they knew best. </Soapbox>

 

[Capt Jim Wyatt]

As an aside...I expect this CASREP in the hands of NAVSEA played a significant role in sending her to the mothball fleet in the first place. Anyone with any connection to NAVSEA, even a @Wookie would have been able to learn of this issue during the process of reefing this ship.

 

[Capt Jim Wyatt]

This image may help some of you visualize the proximity of #1 and #2 machinery spaces.

 

[Wookie]

As an aside...I expect this CASREP in the hands of NAVSEA played a significant role in sending her to the mothball fleet in the first place. Anyone with any connection to NAVSEA, even a @Wookie would have been able to learn of this issue during the process of reefing this ship.

Class problem?

 

[The Chairman]

It's my understanding that hundreds of people were trying to help. It would be hard to vet the wheat from the chaffe. There were indeed too many chiefs, but God decided that Jim's Speigel Grove should not stay on her side, so he gave her a gentle nudge at the correct moment to right her.

 

[Capt Jim Wyatt]

Class problem?

I don't know.