Rockport Public Library

In peril, a daring decision, a captain's resolve, and the salvage that made history, Skip Strong & Twain Braden

eng

autobiography

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non fiction

In peril

1014268205

Skip Strong & Twain Braden

a daring decision, a captain's resolve, and the salvage that made history

When Skip Strong, the thirty-two-year-old Captain of the 688-foot oil tanker Cherry Valley received the call, all he knew was that an ocean going tug with five men aboard was in distress off Florida's east coast. Caught in an unusually powerful storm, the tug's engines failed, and as the winds gusted to more than sixty miles per hour and the sea whipped into a frenzy, the tug--and the barge it was towing-- were in danger of being swept ashore. Captain Strong also knew that he would follow the age-old tradition of sea rescue. Coming to the aid of the crew, the tug, and its cargo, he would have to maneuver his ship--laden with 10 million gallons of oil-- in extremely hazardous conditions. One mistake and Strong would be responsible for an ecological disaster on Florida's beaches equal to that of the Exxon Valdez. What Captain Strong didn't know was that the tug was carrying a 150-foot aluminum fuel cell worth upwards of $50 million. And that in the instant he decided to rescue the tug and its crew, he was opening the door on a dramatic and tense legal struggle that would pit him against the United States Government for salvage rights

Part 1. A life at sea -- Three years later -- The Poseidon and ET-70 -- Preparing for the tow -- Loading cargo -- Crossing the Gulf -- Part 2. Storm clouds building -- Small vessels in a big ocean -- Heavy weather -- Swiss cheese -- A call for help -- The sea claims two -- Bethel Shoal -- Part 3. Plan A -- The unmanned barge -- The last chance -- Calling the office -- The tug that couldn't -- A measure of relief -- Waiting for Gordon to pass -- A race against the sands -- The Firat floats free -- Part 4. In peril -- Alongside at Fort Pierce -- The case for salvage -- Trial in New Orleans -- A bucket of seawater and a lot of facts -- A significant reward -- Barbecued shrimp and an appeal -- The end of my salvage career -- Epilogue