Tin Can Sailor by Charles R. Calhoun

Author:Charles R. Calhoun [Calhoun, C. Raymond]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781612515670
Publisher: Naval Institute Press

CHAPTER 7

BATTLE REPAIRS

ONCE WE ARRIVED AT ESPIRITU SANTO we had little time to reflect on the battle. Our first priority was to get the critically wounded to the hospital. Hawkins and L. A. Martin in particular needed immediate care. Before we even dropped the hook our whaleboat was in the water, and we transferred Hawkins and Martin to Mobile Base Hospital (MOB) Three. Because that facility was relatively small we kept the rest of our wounded shipmates on board until the hospital ship Solace arrived that afternoon. She had received word of the Sterett’s casualties by radio, and soon her motor launch—staffed by a team of doctors and nurses—was at our accommodation ladder, taking our shipmates aboard with great care and affection. As we had planned, the torpedomen were able to look up at the bridge as they left the Sterett and see the painted silhouettes of the enemy battleship, cruiser, and destroyer; they noticed them and were cheered by those symbols of their outstanding performance. All hands gathered at the rail to see them off and convey our wishes for a speedy recovery.

Harry Nyce was greatly distressed by the knowledge that, had he had access to the trained personnel and the facilities of a hospital surgery, he would not have had to amputate in at least two instances. I noticed that he seemed depressed, and when I asked him why he responded that what he had done was more like butchery than the expert surgery of which he was capable. I reassured him that without his courage as well as his skill as a doctor and a surgeon, many of our wounded would not have survived. But it was many weeks before he seemed to come to terms with himself. Finally he accepted the fact that aboard a destroyer the lack of medical facilities was unavoidable. His frustration with this aspect of his role was probably the real reason he applied for a transfer to Pensacola for a course in aviation medicine.

After we had transferred our patients to the Solace we pulled up to a tanker to fuel. As soon as we moored to her, she caught fire. For a little while we wondered if we were jinxed, but the fire proved to be only a superficial one topside and was soon extinguished. Finally we relaxed, and all hands got some much-needed sleep.

The morning of 15 November dawned bright and clear, and we were ordered to move alongside a small seaplane tender, the Tangier, for temporary repairs. That done, we discovered that our old friend Watso was in port. He was now the commanding officer of the USS Vestal, a heavy repair ship, and had relieved Capt. Cassin Young of that command only a few days before the engagement in Iron Bottom Sound. With Jess Coward’s blessing, I went aboard the Vestal for a visit. My host knew a great deal about our night action. He told me how proud he was that his old ship had distinguished herself.

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