Becoming CHENG on the USS Hollister (DD 788) gave me enough problems. i was responsible for running a tired engineering plant without any real engineering experience, on a tired ship, struggling to get to its regular overhaul (ROH). Losing one-third of my engineers due to being assigned as a reserve ship added to the difficulty.
Perhaps the biggest problem was not engineering, but all of this happening with the crisis of drugs in the Navy during my time on board, 1973-1975.
Looking back, it seems humorous. But it wasn’t humorous then. Here are some, but not all of the examples:
My chief Hull Technician (HT) was walking down the starboard side, main deck. one of his third class HTs was maintaining a hatch, doing some welding. The chief asked his sailor if he had a light so he could light his cigarette. The sailor raised his welding mask, reached into his pocket, and pulled out his lighter. Unfortunately for the sailor, his plastic bag fell out of his pocket onto the deck. It was filled with marijuana, weed. To Captain’s Mast he would go.
♦︎♦︎♦︎
Two firemen decided they would smoke a little grass while they had the duty. They cogitated about where they could enjoy their smokes. So, they climbed into a fan room, closed the hatch, and lit up. Unfortunately for the firemen, the fan in the fan room was providing ventilation for the main passageway. Soon, the unquestionable aroma of marijuana was permeating the main passageway. The duty master at arms began following the odor and opened the hatch to the fan room. To Captain’s Mast they would go.
♦︎♦︎♦︎
We were getting underway for ops in the SOCAL op areas. On the day we were getting underway, i came aboard at 0300 to be there for the BTs when they lit off the boilers. They informed me that someone had taken all of our sprayer plates (the plates sprayed the fuel oil into the boiler). My BT1s went to the other tin cans moored at the Long Island Naval Station and borrowed enough sprayer plates for us to meet our mission. The sprayer plates were never found. We ordered a new set, which arrived before our next underway period. We were pretty sure a sailor who knew enough about our boilers took them and threw them over the side. We were also pretty sure that sailor was high on drugs. We never found him either.
♦︎♦︎♦︎
Someone we never caught must have been pumped up on drugs. One night while in our home port, a sailor went up to the torpedo deck. On the bulkhead was a high pressure air connection. It was used to charge the torpedo tubes them into the water. The hatch to the HP air must have weighed several hundred pounds. This guy lifts it up and tosses it over the side. i remain amazed he could do that.
♦︎♦︎♦︎
i think the one that stunned me the most was when an Electronic Technician second class petty officer (ET2) went up to the bridge one night. He cut the wires and stole the bridge to bridge UHF radio, critical for communicating with other ships in piloting in close waters. He took it to a a pawn shop, and he pawned it for enough cash — a huge difference to what the gear actually cost — to buy some LSD, which i suspect he was on when he came up with the idea. He was caught and went to a special court martial, convicted and kicked out with a felony record.
♦︎♦︎♦︎
i never had possession or even a drink of alcohol on my ships. i have never used marijuana or other illegal drug. This was not so noble. If i had not been a Naval officer, i’m pretty sure i would have used drugs just as i used alcohol when not on my ships. But i just found it wrong to do something i had to enforce on sailors not to do. i am too old to make judgements about other’s decisions. This occurred a half-century ago. It’s history.
i think my tour as a chief engineer gave me a real understanding of what my primary focus had to be. My respect for those sailors whom i supported to do their jobs became clear. i believe dealing with those problems made me a better officer in the long run.
Time to stop the pontification and get on with sea stories.