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There will be stories told of the brave men of Forrestal for years to come. These are only a few examples:

Ltjg. Robert Cates, the carrier's explosive ordnance demolition officer, calmly recounted later how he had "noticed that there was a 500-pound bomb and a 750-pound bomb in the middle of the flight deck . . . that were still smoking. They hadn't detonated or anything; they were just setting there smoking. So I went up and defused them and had them jettisoned."

One hundred thirty-four men died on the Forrestal that day. Their fellow sailors had to create a makeshift morgue on the hangar deck.
Ltjg. Cates also told how one of his men, whom he named only as Black, volunteered to be lowered by line through a hole in the flight deck to defuse a live bomb that had dropped to the 03 level — even though the compartment was still on fire and full of smoke. Black did the job; later, Ltjg. Cates had himself lowered into the compartment to attach a line to the bomb so it could be jettisoned.
This too from Cates: "We [Black and himself] started picking up everything we could find that had explosives in it and started throwing them over the side. Some squadron pilots came up to me as we went aft — I don't know who they were — [and] helped me take a Sidewinder missile off a burning F-4. We just continued working our way aft and taking what ordnance we found off aircraft and throwing it over the side."
Two Forrestal flight deck crewmen, reports said, were knocked overboard by one of the explosions, fell 70 feet into the water, were picked up by a rescue helicopter and deposited back on the flight deck — and resumed fire fighting at once.
One man in a crash crew forklift vehicle, with only one hose playing water on him, tried to get rid of a burning plane by ramming it repeatedly. The plane was jettisoned.
Lt. Cmdr. Larry Forderhase, ship's catapult officer, was preparing to launch aircraft when the fire broke out. He immediately started clearing the deck of bombs and rockets before helping to move planes forward.

The destroyer USS Rupertus (DD-851) steams alongside the burning Forrestal ready to assist in the damage control effort, 29 July 1967
Aviation Electrician's Mate 3rd Class Bruce Mulligan, a 22-year-old VA-106 crewman, was all the way aft on the flight deck when he heard explosions. He turned, saw a "fireball" coming at him and hit the deck. Somehow, he managed to get forward and was headed for a fire hose when he was hit by shrapnel. He helped a friend with a broken leg get to sick bay, then returned to the flight deck.

"Back aft of the island, we started throwing missiles and rockets over the side," he recounted later. "After that was done, I looked around for some of my buddies on the line crew and I could find only one. So we decided to help them fight the fire and got the fire hoses back aft and went to fight the plane fires. My buddy and I stayed back aft for I don't know how long. We got separated and some officer said later to leave.

In the photos above, the crew tries to fight the fires on the flight deck

"I went back to the island and got my hands taken care of and stayed back there [to rest for a while]. I was kind of groggy. I found another of my buddies and we went back aft again to help with the fire. By this time, they were working on the holes in the flight deck.

"Once again, one of our officers in the squadron found me and took me down to the forecastle to rest. I stayed down there for about ten minutes, then went back aft again. ... I stayed back there until I just about passed out and my buddy dragged me out of there. . ."
Seaman Milton Parker was just watching flight operations from the 09 level when the fire struck. Unable to get to his General Quarters station because it was cut off, he manned a hose on the flight deck for almost nine hours. He told how the heat of the deck burned both soles off his shoes, but "my feet are okay because I put on some flight deck shoes and went back in" to continue fire fighting.
The CVW-17 operations officer, Lt. Cmdr. Herb Hope, was to fly a VA-46 A-4 with a launch time of 11a.m. 'When the flight deck erupted in flames, he managed to escape from his plane and, between explosions, literally rolled off the flight deck into a safety net. He made his way down to the hangar deck to coordinate the actions of a damage control party in one of the hangar bays. "The port quarter of the flight deck, where I was," he said, "is no longer there."

Fed by clothing, bedding and other flammables, the fires in the levels between the flight and hangar decks burned with an awesome fury. Men trying to locate shipmates trapped in compartments were driven out by flames and smoke. The after section of the hangar deck was so thick with smoke that it was impossible to see.

As the crew realized that some of the bombs were exploding in the fire very quickly, they decided to get rid of them in any way possible. The photo at left shows crew members rolling a bomb over to the deck edge so they could throw it over.

These are excerpts from an account given by Ens. Robert R. Schmidt, a 24-year-old engineering officer:

"... My work really wasn't the exciting kind of thing; just keeping the fire from spreading into any other areas. My people were doing all kinds of dirty work, moving into areas where the water was so hot it was almost boiling. OBA (Oxygen Breathing Apparatus) windows started fogging up and the people could hardly see anything. Yet, these kids went into the deeper areas of the ship, endangering their own lives. . . ."

At 1:48 p.m., Forrestal reported that the fires in the 01, 02 and 03 levels still burned, but that all the ship's machinery and steering equipment were operational.

Flight deck personnel aboard USS Oriskany (CVA-34) disembark a wounded Forrestal sailor from a SH-3A Sea King helicopter. Oriskany, herself the victim of a fire the previous year, provided medical support during the Forrestal fire.

At 2:12 p.m., the after radio compartment was evacuated because of dense smoke and water. "All fires out on 01 level, port side," the ship reported.

At 2:47 p.m. the compartment fires continued but progress was being made. Forrestal was steaming toward a rendezvous with the hospital ship USS Repose (AH 16).

At 3 p.m., the commander of Task Force 77 announced he was sending Forrestal to Subic Bay, Philippines, after the carrier rendezvoused with Repose.

At 5:05, a muster of Forrestal crewmen — both in the carrier and aboard other ships — was begun. Fires were still burning in the ship's carpenter shop and on the main deck.

At 6:44 p.m., the fires were still burning.

At 8:30 p.m., the fires in the 02 and 03 levels were contained, but the area was still too hot to enter. Holes were cut in the flight deck to provide access to compartments below.

Ens. Schmidt and his damage control team continued to fight their way into burning compartments; his work later that afternoon was as an investigator for the damage control assistant. There were times he had to enter spaces that were virtually inaccessible. "I asked for volunteers," he recalled, "and I immediately had two or three who followed me back into the guts of the fire. Several times, people would come up to me and say, 'What can I do? How can I help?' ... At first, I couldn't find work for all the people who wanted to help. I can't give enough praise to the sailors I supervised. They fought the fire and did all the dirty jobs ... These kids worked all night, 24-28 hours, containing the fire. . . . I've nothing but praise for the American sailor."

On the hangar deck, a chief petty officer — his soaked clothing plastered to his body — ran from burning hangar bay three and called for five volunteers. He got 30.
At the height of the fire, Capt. John K. Beling, Forrestal's commanding officer, went to hangar bay two. He watched quietly for a while, told his men they were doing well. He returned to the bridge; there was nothing more he could do.
Filipino stewards, some who appeared to weigh no more than 100 pounds, rolled 250-pound bombs to the edges and pushed them overboard.
With strength born of adversity, 130-pound Lt. Otis Kight single-handedly carried a 250-pound bomb to the edge of the hangar deck and threw it over the side. His shipmates are certain he will never be able to repeat that feat.
Chief Aviation Ornanceman Thomas Lawler escaped from his shop on the 03 level when the first explosion occurred and the overhead "began to glow like it was on fire." For hours afterwards, he disarmed aircraft in the after hangar bays, groping his way through smoke so thick that he could see no more than a foot ahead. "I don't believe we were in very great danger in hangar bay three," he said later. "All the fires were contained in the very aft end of the hangar bay. The only thing that worried me slightly at all was on the first trip in the hangar bay when you could see practically nothing at all [but] we kept hearing a gushing, a loud, gurgling sound and we couldn't quite determine what that was and the unknown always worries you a little bit. . ."

At 8:33 p.m., Forrestal reported that fires on the 02 level were under control but that fire fighting was greatly hampered because of smoke and heat.

At 8: 54, only the 02 level on the port side was still burning. Medical evacuation to Repose was in progress.

At 12:20 a.m., July 30, all the fires were out. Forrestal crewmembers continued to clear smoke and cool hot steel on the 02 and 03 levels.

The tragedy of the hours that had passed since the fire started began to penetrate into the minds and bodies of the men aboard the carrier. The adrenalin that had pumped through them began to seep away. They were tired but they could not sleep; they walked restlessly about the ship, lending a hand wherever they could.

The fire destroyed millions of dollars worth of planes and other equipment. The flight deck and much of the rest of the ship was in ruins after the fire.

As time passed, volunteers were still requested and swarms of men — men who had fought the fire since 11 a.m. and who were dead tired and sick from smoke and the sights they'd seen — forgot their fatigue and their sickness and raced through passageways to man the hoses again.

Lt. j.g. Frank Guinan sat on the deck next to his room, too tired to get up and go inside. "It seems so unreal," he said, and he added: "Nobody had better say to me that American youth [is] lazy. I saw men working today who were not only injured but thoroughly exhausted and they had to be carried away. They were trying so hard to help but they were actually becoming a burden."

It was time, now, to begin to assess the damage. There were four gaping holes in the flight deck where bombs exploded, pushing armored steel down and under — much like an old-fashioned hole in a beer can.

Stock was taken of the aircraft. It leveled off to a report of 26 either destroyed or jettisoned and 31 more damaged to some extent.

Aerial view of the flight deck on fire

And it was time to arrive at a final toll of dead and injured. For hours, the muster of Forrestal men continued; it was made terrifically difficult because so many of the crew were scattered in other ships.

And it was time to recall how those ships had come to the aid of the stricken Forrestal. From Oriskany and Bon Homme Richard had come medical teams and fire-fighting equipment. The skippers of the destroyers USS Rupertus (DD 851) and USS George K. MacKenzie (DD 836) , in what Rear Adm. Harvey P. Lanham, ComCarDiv Two, called an act of "magnificent seamanship," had maneuvered their ships to within 20 feet of the carrier so fire hoses could be effectively used.

But mostly it was a time to think of shipmates, those who had fought the flames and died because of their heroism. They were men like Data Systems Technician 2nd Class Stephen L. Hock, who was one of the first to reach the 03 level and who fought the fire and aided survivors until he was driven back by fire and smoke, then donned an OBA and returned again to the blazing area to fight the flames and help the injured. He kept up the pace for hours, then was overcome in a flooded and gas-filled compartment. Efforts to revive him were unsuccessful.

A ruined 5 inch gun is hoisted out of the ship during repairs. The guns were sent to the scrappers and eventually were replaced by missiles.

They were men like Aviation Ordnanceman 2nd Class Joseph C. Shartzer who returned to the inferno on the 03 level from which he had narrowly escaped and sacrificed his life as he aided in rescuing trapped men and fighting the fire.

They were men like Aviation Boatswain's Mate (Hydaulics) 3rd Class Robert A. Rhuda, who could have escaped from the smoke-filled compartments where he was on duty as a police petty officer, but who remained behind to awaken and direct or physically assist shipmates out of the area — returning time and time again until the explosion of a bomb destroyed the compartment in which he was last seen.

They were men like that.

Eighteen of the crew were eventually buried in Arlington National Cemetery.
They are buried beneath the memorial that appears above

As Forrestal steamed for Subic Bay, a memorial service was held in Hangar Bay One for the crewmen who had given their lives for their ship and their country. More than 2,000 Forrestal men listened to and prayed with Chaplains Geoffrey Gaughan and David Cooper as they paid tribute to their lost shipmates. The three volleys fired by 13 U.S. Marines were followed by the benediction, which closed the service after 15 minutes of prayer and hymns.

The heroes and the brave men aboard Forrestal were uniformly praised by those under whom they served. Vice Adm. C. T. Booth, ComNavAirLant, paid tribute to their courage, as did Adm. Roy L. Johnson, CinCPacFlt, Adm. E. P. Holmes, CinCLantFlt, and Paul Nitze, Deputy Secretary of Defense, who also spoke for Secretary of Defense Robert S. McNamara.

And there was this personal message to Capt. Beling: "I want you and the men of your command to know that the thoughts of the American people are with you at this tragic time. We all feel a great sense of personal loss. The devotion to duty and courage of your men have not gone unnoticed. The sacrifices they have made shall not be in vain." It was signed by Lyndon B. Johnson.

Capt. Beling also commented on his crew: "I am most proud of the way the crew reacted. The thing that is foremost in my mind is the concrete demonstration that I have seen of the worth of American youth. I saw many examples of heroism. I saw, and subsequently heard of, not one single example of cowardice."

Forrestal men were men like that.

Additional Sources:

www.sailorstotheend.com
www.naval-air.org
www.hazegray.org
www.forrestal.org
users.erols.com
tampabayonline.net
www.lostliners.com
www.arlingtoncemetery.net

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I saw the movie "Trial by Fire" in boot camp. I scared the hell out of me. I thought about it everytime I went on the flight deck. This year I read the book "Sailors to the End." They were truly Sailors to the End. Heros every one.

Today's classic warship, USS Wisconsin (BB-9)

Illinois class battleship
displacement. 11,564
length. 373'10"
beam. 72'2.5"
draft. 28'8.1"
speed. 16 k.
complement. 531
armament. 4 13", 14 6", 16 6-pdrs., 6 1-pdrs., 4 .30-cal. mg.

The USS Wisconsin (Battleship No. 9) was laid down on 9 February 1897 at San Francisco, Calif., by the Union Iron Works; launched on 26 November 1898; sponsored by Miss Elizabeth Stephenson, the daughter of Senator Isaac Stephenson of Marinette, Wis., and commissioned on 4 February 1901, Capt. George C. Reiter in command.

She mainly operated along the western coasts of North and Central America during the next two years, often serving as flagship of the Pacific Squadron. She also cruised to the South Pacific in late 1901 and to Chile early in 1902. Between June 1903 and September 1906 Wisconsin was stationed in the Far East as Asiatic Fleet flagship. She was out of commission at the Puget Sound Navy Yard from November 1906 until April 1908, and in July 1908 joined the "Great White Fleet" battleships that were then preparing for the trans-Pacific stage of their cruise around the World. Participating in the remainder of this epic voyage, Wisconsin visited New Zealand, Australia, the Philippines, Japan, China, Ceylon, then crossed the Indian Ocean, transited the Suez Canal, and passed through the Mediterranean and across the Atlantic before steaming into Hampton Roads, Virginia, in February 1909.

Over the next few months, Wisconsin underwent modernization work that greatly changed her appearance. Emerging from the shipyard with a new "basket" foremast, grey paint and many other alterations, she operated along the U.S. East Coast and in the Caribbean from mid-1909 to the spring of 1910, then went into reserve. Fitted with a second "basket" mast, she emerged briefly from reserve in 1912, and in 1915 joined the Naval Academy Training Squadron. In the middle of that year, the battleship passed through the Panama Canal on a Midshipmen's training cruise, thus returning to the Pacific for the first time in nearly seven years.

However, Wisconsin's remaining career was primarily spent in the Atlantic. Her Naval Academy tour ended when the United States entered World War I in April 1917. During that conflict she was employed to train the huge numbers of new Sailors needed to man the greatly enlarged wartime Navy. Wisconsin generally operated in the Chesapeake Bay for this purpose, but made occasional trips along the East Coast. With the War at an end, in early 1919 she participated in Atlantic Fleet exercises off Cuba and, in mid-year, carried Naval Academy midshipmen on a Caribbean cruise. Decommissioned in May 1920, a few weeks later Wisconsin was given the hull number BB-9, but had no further active service. She was sold for scrapping in January 1922.

On This Day In History

Birthdates which occurred on October 14:
1542 Abul-Fath Djalal-ud-Din, 3rd Mogol emperor of India (1556-1605)
1633 James II king of England (1685-88)
1644 William Penn English Quaker & founder of PA
1712 George Grenville British PM (1763-65)
1734 Francis Lightfoot Lee, US farmer/signer (Declaration of Independence)
1857 Elwood Haynes auto pioneer, built one of 1st US autos
1867 Masaoka Shiki Japan, haiku & tanka poet/diarist (Salt Water Ballads)
1869 Joseph Duveen England, art connoisseur (Elgin marbles)
1871 Alexander von Zemlinsky Vienna Austria, composer (Der Schneeman)
1873 Raymond C Ewry Indiana, polio victim who won 10 Olympic golds
1882 Eamon DeValera NY, Pres of Ireland (1937-48, 51-54, 57-59)
1888 Katherine Mansfield New Zealand writer (Aloe, Garden Party)
1890 Dwight D Eisenhower Denison, Tx (R) 34th Pres (1953-1961)
1894 e. e. cummings Cambridge Mass, poet (Tulips & Chimneys)
1896 Lillian Gish silent film/stage actress (Birth of a Nation)
1899 Alan Washbond US, 2-man bobsled (Olympic-gold-1932)
1906 Benita Hume London England, actress (Vicky-The Halls of Ivy)
1906 Hannah Arendt Germany, historian (Origins of Totalitarianism)
1907 Pert Kelton Great Falls Mont, actress (Cavalcade of Stars)
1910 John Wooden basketball coach (UCLA-10 national championships)
1916 C Everett Koop surgeon general (1981-89)
1924 Robert Webber Santa Ana Calif, actor (79 Park Avenue)
1927 Roger Moore London England, actor (Alaskans, Maverick, Saint)
1928 Gary Graffman NYC, pianist (Leventritt Award)
1931 Rafael Puyana Bogota Colombia, baroque harpsichordist (NY debut 1957)
1935 La Monte Young Bern Idaho, composer (Compostion in 1990)
1938 John Dean III former White House counsel, Watergate figure
1939 Ralph Lauren fashion designer (Chaps)
1940 Cliff Richards [Harry Webb], England, rocker (Suddenly)
1940 Pat Finley Asheville NC, actress (Ellen Hartley-Bob Newhart Show)
1943 Lance Rentzel NFL receiver (Minn, LA)/ex-husband of Joey Heatherton
1943 Noreen Corcoran Quincy Mass, actress (Kelly-Bachelor Father)
1944 Udo Kier Germany, actor (Warhol Dracula, Warhol Frankenstein)
1946 Justin Hayward singer (Moody Blues-Nights in White Satin)
1947 Charlie Joiner Many La, NFL receiver (Houston, Cincinnati, San Diego)
1950 Sheila Young Ockerwitz US, 500m speed skater (Olympic-gold-1976)
1952 Harry Anderson Newport RI, actor (Judge Harry Stone-Night Court)
1952 Nikolai Adrianov USSR, gymnast (Olympic-4 gold/2 silver/bronze-1976)
1953 Greg Evigan South Amboy NJ, actor (BJ-BJ & the Bear)
1956 Beth Daniel Charleston SC, LPGA golfer (1980 player of the year)
1958 Thomas Dolby rocker (She Blinded Me With Science)
1959 A.J. Pero Staten Is, drummer (Twisted Sister-Not Gonna Take It)
1961 Melanie Wilson actress (Jennifer-Perfect Strangers)
1961 Mike Tramp Denmark, heavy metal rocker (White Lion-Mane Attraction)
1967 Arleen Sorkin actress (Day of Our Life, America's Funniest Videos)

Deaths which occurred on October 14:
0530 Dioscurus, anti-Pope (530), dies
1066 Harold II, King of England (1066), dies
1880 Victorio, Apache chief, killed by Mexican army
1944 Erwin Rommel German Field Marshall (WW II-Africa), dies at 52
1959 Errol Flynn actor, dies
1977 Bing Crosby dies of a heart attack at 74, in Madrid, Spain
1983 Paul Fix actor (Rifleman), dies at 82 of kidney failure
1986 Keenan Wynn actor (Dallas, Call to Glory, Last Precinct), dies at 70
1990 Leonard Bernstein composer (West Side Story), dies at 72

Reported: MISSING in ACTION

1966 THOMAS DARWIN JOEL---SANTA CLARA CA.
1967 CONAWAY GARY LEE---BLUE ISLAND IL.
[REMAINS RETURNED 8/84]
1967 VAUGHAN ROBERT REDDINGTON---LOS ANGELES CA.

POW / MIA Data & Bios supplied by
the P.O.W. NETWORK. Skidmore, MO. USA.

On this day...
530 [Discorus] ends his reign as Catholic Pope
1066 Battle of Hastings, in which William the Conqueror wins England
1322 Robert the Bruce of Scotland defeats King Edward II of England at Byland, forcing Edward to accept Scotland's independence
1586 Mary Queen of Scots goes on trial for conspiracy against Elizabeth
1651 Laws are passed in Massachusetts forbidding the poor to adopt excessive styles of dress
1773 Britain's East India Company tea ships' cargo is burned at Annapolis, Md.
1774 1st Continental Congress is 1st to declare colonial rights (Phila)
1806 Battle of Auerstadt-French beat Prussians
1834 1st black to obtain a US patent, Henry Blair, for a corn planter
1843 British arrest Irish nationalist Daniel O'Connell for conspiracy
1862 Baseballer James Creighton ruptures bladder hitting HR, dies 10/18
1867 15th & last Tokugawa Shogun resigns in Japan
1884 George Eastman patents paper-strip photographic film
1905 NY Giants beats Phila A's, 4 games to 1 in 2nd World Series, Giant's Christy Mathewson's 3rd straight world series shutout
1906 All Chicago World Series, 1st AL victory, White Sox win 4 games to 2 (World Series #3)
1908 Cubs beat Tigers 4 games to 1 in 1st 5th World Series rematch
1912 Bull Moose Teddy Roosevelt shot while campaigning in Milwaukee
1920 Part of Petsamo province ceded by Soviet Union to Finland
1922 1st automated telephones-Pennsylvania exchange in NYC
1926 Alan Alexander Milne's book "Winnie-the-Pooh"
1929 Phila A's beat Chicago Cubs, 4 games to 1 in 26th World Series
1929 Philadelphia A's set world series record of 10 runs in an inning (World Series #26)
1933 Nazi Germany announces withdrawal from League of Nations
1934 "Lux Radio Theatre" premieres
1939 BMI (Broadcast Music Incorporated) formed
1943 US 8th Air Force loses 60 B-17 bombers during assault on Schweinfurt
1944 German Field Marshal Erwin Rommel commits suicide rather than face trial for his part in an attempt to overthrow Hitler
1945 Chicago Cardinals end a record 29-game losing streak, beat Bears
1947 Chuck Yeager in Bell XS-1 makes 1st supersonic flight (Mach 1.015)
1949 14 US Communist Party leaders convicted of sedition
1950 Rev Sun Young Moon liberated from Hung Nam prison
1951 Det Lion Jack Christiansen returns 2 punts for touchdowns vs LA Rams
1953 Ike promises to fire as Red any federal worker taking 5th amendment
1958 Malagasy Republic becomes autonomous republic in French Community
1960 Peace Corps 1st suggested by JFK
1962 US U-2 espionage planes locate missile launchers in Cuba
1962 Houston Oiler George Blanda throws for 6 TD passes vs NY Titans 56-17
1964 Martin Luther King Jr wins Nobel Peace Prize
1965 Joe Engle in X-15 reaches 80 km
1965 Sandy Koufax hurls his 2nd shutout of world series beating Twins 2-0 (World Series #62)
1968 1st live telecast from a manned US spacecraft (Apollo 7)
1968 Gruener & Watson (US) set scuba depth record (133 m) in Bahamas
1968 J.R. Hines of US runs 100 m in world record 9.95 sec
1969 Race riots in Springfield Mass
1970 Cleve Cavaliers lose to Buffalo Braves in their 1st game 107-92
1971 2 killed in Memphis racial disturbances
1975 Pres Ford escapes injury when his limousine is struck broadside
1976 Chris Chambliss' 9th inning lead off homer gives Yanks pennant #30
1976 Soyuz 23 carries 2 to Salyut 6, but returns without docking
1977 Linda Ronstadt sings the national anthem at the 74th World Series
1978 1st TV movie from a TV series-"Rescue from Gilligan's Island"
1978 Despite Denis Potvin hat trick in 3:21 Islanders lose 7-10, making Islander record when scoring a hat trick-22-2-1
1979 Flyers start 35 game unbeaten streak beating Toronto 4-3
1979 NHL's greatest scorer Wayne Gretsky scores his 1st NHL goal
1980 Bob Marley's last concert
1980 Pres nominee Ronald Reagan promises to name a woman to Supreme Court
1982 6,000 Unification church couples wed in Korea
1982 Islanders assessed 108 penalty minutes Penguins 125 (233 total)
1982 NY Islanders greatest shutout margin (9-0) vs Pittsburgh Penguins
1983 US Marine peacekeeper Sgt Allen Soifert killed by sniper in Beirut
1984 Detroit Tigers beat SD Padres, 4 games to 1 in 81st World Series
1985 On Mon Night football, Jets retire Joe Namath's #12, beat Miami 23-7
1986 Concentration camp survivor Elie Wiesel wins Nobel Peace Prize
1986 The IOC decides to stagger the Winter & Summer Olympic schedule
1986 Tim Kides of West NY, NJ performs 25,000 leg raises in 11:57:15
1987 In Midland, Tx 1«-year-old Jessica McClure falls 22' (7m) down a well
1988 Mike Tyson countersues Robin Givens for divorce and annulment
1988 NJ Devils raise their 1st pennant (Patrick Div Playoff Champs)
1989 Texas A&I, Johnny Bailey sets NCAA season rush record at 6,085 yards
1990 Jeff Goldblum & wife Geena Davis file for divorce
1990 SF 49er Joe Montana passes for 6 touchdowns vs Atlanta (45-35)
1994 - Nobel Prize awarded to Yasser Arafat, Yitzhak Rabin & Shimon Peres

Holidays
Note: Some Holidays are only applicable on a given "day of the week"

Bangladesh : Durga Puja
Malagasy Rep : Independence Day (1958)
Maryland : Peggy Stewart Day-US sinks ship against taxes (1774)
Peo's Dem Rep of Yemen (South Yemen) : Independence Day (1962)
Western Samoa : White Sunday (2nd Sunday) (Sunday)
Canada : Thanksgiving Day (Monday)
Florida : Farmers' Day (1915) (Monday)
Hawaii : Discoverer's Day (Monday)
US : Columbus Day (1492) (Monday)
Virgin Is & Puerto Rico : Friendship Day (Monday)
Firefighters Week (Day 2)
[CT, NY, MA] Dictionary Week (Day 3)
national lower case day
Country Music Month
National Sarcastics' Awareness Month

Religious Observances
Orth : Protection (Intercession) of Mary (10/1 OS)
RC : Memorial of St Callistus I, pope (217-222), martyr (opt)
Ang : Commemoration of St Teresa of Avila

Religious History
1656 The first punitive legislation in Massachusetts against Quakers was enacted. (The marriage of church-and-state in Puritanism made them regard the ritual-free Quakers as spiritually apostate and politically subversive).
1735 Methodist pioneer John Wesley first set sail to America, to minister to the Indians under Georgia Gov. Oglethorpe. On this same date, Wesley began keeping his famous, 55-year-long journal, whose last entry was dated Oct 24, 1790.
1835 Birth of William G. Fischer, American sacred chorister. Three of his compositions later became hymn tunes: FISCHER ("Whiter Than Snow"), HANKEY ("I Love to Tell the Story") and ROCK OF REFUGE ("The Rock That is Higher Than I").
1876 Birth of Harry A. Ironside, American clergyman. Converted at 14, he preached for the Salvation Army, later for the Plymouth Brethren. From 1930-1948, he pastored at the Moody Memorial Church in Chicago.
1983 The National Council of Churches issued "The Inclusive Language Lectionary -- " Scripture readings translated to omit or blur gender references. God was thus called "Father and Mother" or "the One"; and "man" was replaced by "humanity" or "humankind." The translation proved shortlived.

Source: William D. Blake. ALMANAC OF THE CHRISTIAN CHURCH. Minneapolis: Bethany House, 1987.

Thought for the day :
"He who can no longer pause to wonder and stand rapt in awe is as good as dead; his eyes are closed."

Confucius Say...
Man who eat many prunes get good run for money.

Murphys Law of the day...
In any calculation, any error which can creep in will do so.

Astounding fact # 654,985...
The word "Checkmate" in chess comes from the Persian phrase "Shah Mat", which means "the king is dead".

Good afternoon to all at the Foxhole! Hope you're having a wonderful day!

Hellooooo troops and veterans! THANK YOU for your service and for keeping Freedom alive and well.

Just snuck in for a minute while waiting for my hubby to get back with the new pump for our well. The old one poo-ed out on us yesterday and it took a while to figure out exactly what the problem was. Never a dull moment around here, it seems. LOL!
With FR moving slowly today, my time's used up.....I heard the truck pull in a minute ago. pfffffft! I'll be back later once our "mission" is accomplished and I've washed up a few things. Catch ya in a bit. *HUGS*

Evening everyone. Nice thread, Sam.

"They were men like Aviation Boatswain's Mate (Hydaulics) 3rd Class Robert A. Rhuda, who could have escaped from the smoke-filled compartments where he was on duty as a police petty officer, but who remained behind to awaken and direct or physically assist shipmates out of the area - returning time and time again until the explosion of a bomb destroyed the compartment in which he was last seen. They were men like that."

Good post!
As a Navy Aviation Ordnanceman ( AO ) ( your never really never former are you) got to watch and listen the safety films and talks on this once or twice a year.
A good example of do it right or you and others can die!
All three of the big Carrier fires were caused by small not paying attention to detail.
On the Forrestal ( or the Forest Fire as it’s some times referred to) was caused by a 5” Zuni Rocket firing out of its LAU-10 pod as the AOs were plugging in the electrical connector. Theses rockets are fired electrically. So any current will fire them
There are three sources. that it can come from
1. A short in the wiring
2. Salt water in the connector. ( when you plug it in it can produce a momentary salt water battery)

3. Static electricity ( one of the first thing your taught. Is Never touch the firing contacts!)

Well there is a forth. S.H.

For the first two you have your AN/AWM-54 Firing Circuit Tester. And the last thing you do. Is use it to perform a stray voltage check before you plug the pod in.

This just shows the exacity and the attention to detail. the Men and Woman must perform there duties. to keep them there shipmates and us safe.
And why when Lt. Belenko (the MiG 25 Pilot who landed his craft in Japan) was taken aboard a Carrier. He believed what he saw and told for the first time was true. Because nobody could train men to do this. Just to put a show on for him!

http://www.margaritaville.com/roadtrip/oshkosh/entry7.html

http://www.hallstar.net/victor.html

http://www.geocities.com/siafdu/viktor.html

Well dammit Sam, Let's give it up for the FID!