The "other" NEREUS boy....ACCIDENT PRONE!

JK Davis (Captain)

I don't remember his name. He came aboard from the NEREUS the night before we left for WestPac to fill our roster for deployment. He was an FA or SA and had never been on a submarine before. It was well into the warm San Diego evening and the duty section were watching the seven movies drawn for the deployment in the crew's mess when suddenly this lump shape came hurtling down the after battery hatch and crashed at the feet of the startled movie bunch! He staggered to his feet, mumbling, turned and started forward only to go crashing down the hatch into the refrigerator spaces, unfortunately on top of the duty cook who was just finishing stowing the provisions for the trip starting the following morning. The cook was not amused.

 The young man was assigned to the Engineers and put to work cleaning the bilges in the forward engine room as SPINAX started the trip to Pearl. He was a smart alec and made comments that soon ticked off the engine room watchstanders who, by the third day at sea, were tired enough of him to take an occasional shot at him with the oil can. When he came off watch for the noon meal, he first went into the crew's head to clean up, dousing himself with torpedo alcohol to clear the oil. Letting the solvent do its job he calmly lighted a cigarette and burst into flame- a human torch from the waist up! Screaming, he staggered into the after battery were 'Bullet' Belgarde, washing dishes in the mess, saw him and immediately ran to him, grabbing a blanket from a bunk and throwing it around the man, smothering the flames. More help and the ship's doc arrived and soon had the terribly burned man in a bunk and covered with anti-burn jelly. The doc recommended getting him to a hospital as soon as possible. Now about 800 miles from Pearl, ComSubPac was notified and soon an Air Force medevac helo was on the way to us. At the extreme range of the aircraft, we would have only 15 minutes to receive a doctor and with his concurrence get the man aboard the helo.

 Fortunately, it was a beautiful, flat calm day and the helo arrived and lowered the doctor, who with the COB and our doc had the man quickly strapped into the wire basket stretcher, moved him forward and up out of the forward torpedo room hatch and hoisted up into the helo. The noose returned for the doctor and the helo was off, 12 minutes after arrival. We followed the helo with radio communications and plotted its position until it reported that they had safely landed at Trippler Hospital at Pearl.

 While we were at Pearl for those few days before heading on to the Far East, the captain, knowing that if the man were discharged from the hospital in 30 days or less he could return to SPINAX, had a discreet talk with the hospital administration officer. Though the man wanted to return to SPINAX, it was with a sigh of relief that we learned that he had been assigned elsewhere and ashore!