You are using an out of date browser. It may not display this or other websites correctly.
You should upgrade or use an alternative browser.
You should upgrade or use an alternative browser.
Rogue waves
- Thread starter Riverbed
- Start date
- Joined
- Oct 20, 2002
- RO Number
- 10503
- Messages
- 3,677
I was on the USS Gen. W.A. Mann, on my way to Korea in Aug of 59.
On the Deck just aft of the Fore deck playing cards with a bunch of GI's.
The weather was 'wavey' to say the least, windy and hot!
We'd been out there for an hour or more, when all of a sudden a wave came over the top of the front deck.
That big ship dived down into a mountain of green water.
We felt the ship go out from under us. Everybody grabbed cards n' hats, that was pretty normal because usually a good gust of wind followed one of those dives and we didn't want to lose our lighters and cards. The lighters were in the hats to hold them on the deck for us.
But this time the damn ship just kept going down....down...down...
As I looked over the side I could see green ocean way up above us.
Then the sinking stopped, sorta mushey like. The big ship began to shudder as the props were out of the water and spinning in free air.
And then the water came down on us.
Tons of it! We were washed down the deck, slammed into a bulkhead and whisked around the bulkhead and smashed into the Railing.
Then scrubbed down the railing, banging into stuff along the way.
I nearly drowned. We were under water for a minute or so.
Then it was gone. Everything was back to normal again.
Mother nature says:
"Never mind boys! Go back to what you were doing !"
We lost everthing. Soaked, cold, puking water, et al!
Soon a Sailor came around and told us to get below.
He mumble something about bad weather.
I was never a smart alec, but right then I was wondering what he might be referring to, which might be worse than what we just escaped.
So, a "Rogue" wave is a term subjective to description.
On that big Troop ship we felt that big wave.
That same wave might have pitch-poled a sail boat
But in my little 16' Starcraft I might have only noticed a large swell.
PS: It got worse a few days later in a Typhoon.
On the Deck just aft of the Fore deck playing cards with a bunch of GI's.
The weather was 'wavey' to say the least, windy and hot!
We'd been out there for an hour or more, when all of a sudden a wave came over the top of the front deck.
That big ship dived down into a mountain of green water.
We felt the ship go out from under us. Everybody grabbed cards n' hats, that was pretty normal because usually a good gust of wind followed one of those dives and we didn't want to lose our lighters and cards. The lighters were in the hats to hold them on the deck for us.
But this time the damn ship just kept going down....down...down...
As I looked over the side I could see green ocean way up above us.
Then the sinking stopped, sorta mushey like. The big ship began to shudder as the props were out of the water and spinning in free air.
And then the water came down on us.
Tons of it! We were washed down the deck, slammed into a bulkhead and whisked around the bulkhead and smashed into the Railing.
Then scrubbed down the railing, banging into stuff along the way.
I nearly drowned. We were under water for a minute or so.
Then it was gone. Everything was back to normal again.
Mother nature says:
"Never mind boys! Go back to what you were doing !"
We lost everthing. Soaked, cold, puking water, et al!
Soon a Sailor came around and told us to get below.
He mumble something about bad weather.
I was never a smart alec, but right then I was wondering what he might be referring to, which might be worse than what we just escaped.
So, a "Rogue" wave is a term subjective to description.
On that big Troop ship we felt that big wave.
That same wave might have pitch-poled a sail boat
But in my little 16' Starcraft I might have only noticed a large swell.
PS: It got worse a few days later in a Typhoon.