Reprinted from past issues of the Seafarers LOG.1950
U.S. Customs officials made their first search of an Iron Curtain country vessel under the authority of the recently passed “Trojan Ship” measure, which permits inspection of foreign-flag ships for atomic bombs and other weapons.
The security check took place in Boston aboard a Finnish ship. Seafarers are urged to apply their own security measures aboard their ships in foreign ports. Vigilance should be maintained to prevent unauthorized persons from boarding or otherwise gaining access to their vessels.
1967
The maritime industry’s highest award for safety was presented to the SIU-crewed Steel Maker for the rescue of four seamen from the Spanish ship Monte Palomares.
The Steel Maker was en route from Spain to New York when it received an SOS from the Monte Palomares, foundering in a North Atlantic storm 900 miles from Bermuda, and immediately altered course to assist the sinking vessel. The Spanish ship had already gone down by the time the Steel Maker arrived, but a red flare from a life raft was spotted and the Steel Maker maneuvered alongside. Three of the raft’s survivors scrambled up the ship’s cargo net to safety, but a fourth was too injured to climb. An SIU member then tied a lifeline around his waist, swam to the raft and brought the injured man on board.
1982
The officers and SIU crew of the USNS Southern Cross were honored by the American Institute of Merchant Shipping for their “humanitarian assistance to Vietnamese refugees adrift in the South China Sea during late September 1981.”
The USNS Southern Cross, part of the SIU Government Service Division fleet operated by the Military Sealift Command, Pacific, picked up 58 desperate “boat people” from a 35-foot boat on July 15, 1981 while en route from Subic Bay, Philippines to Diego Garcia in the Indian Ocean. At the time, their actions were lauded by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees. There were 18 men, 13 women and 27 children on the boat.
1992
Three USNS Mercy crew members were cited by the commander of Military Sealift Command Pacific for rescuing two fishermen off the northern coast of California. SIU member Robert McCumsey brought to safety the two fishermen from a life raft of a capsized 42-foot craft. The Seafarer was assisted by the Mercy’s captain and chief mate in the five- to seven-foot seas with heavy fog and low visibility. McCumsey received the Meritorious Civilian Service Medal.
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