After Desert Storm, Waterman Steamship hauled an “empty” LASH barge back to New Orleans on one of it’s LASH vessels returning from the conflict. The “empty” was towed up the river to a grain dock to load it with grain. When the stevedores removed the barge hatch cover the barge was loaded with Patriot missiles. They shut down the port as it wasn’t an ammo port.
On the Observation Island (MSC ship) one of the 3rd’s ordered some purifier parts and got a pull lanyard for a howitzer.
I was working with a Stevedoring Contractor in Norfolk during D- storm. What fun and how rich I became.
Examples:
A) we were loading LASH BARGES (many )with 1 Humvee each, after we lashed it , and some office reservist came and said “Take that out, it does not go in that LASH BARGE it goes in this LASH BARGE”,the entire time he watched us load it and lash it. We did that , The he said “put 2 Humvees in, but not the one you have in there because you loaded an ambulance and the pickups go together”.
We started over again and again and this was on a Saturday.
B) We loaded a Ro Ro with trucks under supervision from a reservist officer (a dentist) . We loaded the first port Last and visa versa. Under his instruction.
It was explained to him all week beforehand to just give us the cargo lists and port rotations and we will do a fine job. " No", he stated
" I am in charge and will do it properly", well he loaded it backwards. One Longshoreman asked how he would feel if a patient came in to get a root canal and then explained what
he (the dentist) should be doing. Unlash Unload Ro Ro, reload same Ro Ro, on OT naturally.
I worked on an old RO-RO Waterman had contracted to the marines. A reefer container compressor failed on a container that had been aboard 7 years. The crew opened the door to see what needed refrigeration, It was loaded with SS bedpans. Just one of many gvt f-ups.
[QUOTE=Too bad steam is gone;97571]I worked on an old RO-RO Waterman had contracted to the marines. A reefer container compressor failed on a container that had been aboard 7 years. The crew opened the door to see what needed refrigeration, It was loaded with SS bedpans. Just one of many gvt f-ups.[/QUOTE]
Didn’t any body wonder about a 7 year rider in need of a reefer compressor? That’s some compressor, clicking away or did it get serviced during those 7 years? Anything on the cargo manifest? This is beyond belief but I am not doubting your words in the least.
It took a while but finally I figured out SS wasn’t what I at first thought. 
Desert Storm Story #617
Partial load on RoRo from JAX toward Jubail. Just outside Gibraltar we get message to divert to Bremerhaven army base for critical cargo. We get to Bremerhaven and no one knows why we are there. We wait for a week … having a good time and load lots of crew beer, then finally depart with a single (no shit, this is not a sea story) beat up old truck and 4 groundpounders and head for Jubail.
I am willing to bet several morons in MARAD gave each other medals for rushing critical cargo to the front.
Back in the 80’s I was head mechanic for a Marine Electric in N.Y. on my time off. We got the contract to install and wire bilge senors and alarms on The USNS Hayes (T-AG 195) for MSC. She was going to be towed deadship from Bayonne, NJ to Boston for Shipyard. They wanted dual sensors in every bilge. These sensors were wired to two revolving beacons that were mounted on the mast. One light to indicate a rising bilge level and the second was to mean Danger Sinking.
So, they did not want anything permanent so we were told to string all of the cables through the passageways and Water Tight Doors, which I questioned the Ship Sup on and was told it would be fine. We got done and they were very happy with our work, this was our first time working with MSC.
I get a phone call about a week later from the Ship Sup. He was complaining that nothing worked and they were thinking about suing us. I drove over there to see WTF happened. What did I find, all of our wires were cut when they closed all of the water tight doors. I looked at the Ship Sup and said that was why I questioned him on running the wires that way. He looked at me and shook his head. It turns out the Navel Architect that designed the system never thought about having to close the doors.
I got paid in full and as far as I know she never left for that trip. What a waste of money!
[QUOTE=Doodlebug;97569]I was working with a Stevedoring Contractor in Norfolk during D- storm. What fun and how rich I became.
Examples:
A) we were loading LASH BARGES (many )with 1 Humvee each, after we lashed it , and some office reservist came and said “Take that out, it does not go in that LASH BARGE it goes in this LASH BARGE”,the entire time he watched us load it and lash it. We did that , The he said “put 2 Humvees in, but not the one you have in there because you loaded an ambulance and the pickups go together”.
We started over again and again and this was on a Saturday.
[/QUOTE]
Yeah, it can get pretty messy during the voyage if you stow and ambulance and a pick up together. . . . . They just don’t get along.
[QUOTE=Tugs;97586]Back in the 80’s I was head mechanic for a Marine Electric in N.Y. on my time off. We got the contract to install and wire bilge senors and alarms on The USNS Hayes (T-AG 195) for MSC. She was going to be towed deadship from Bayonne, NJ to Boston for Shipyard. They wanted dual sensors in every bilge. These sensors were wired to two revolving beacons that were mounted on the mast. One light to indicate a rising bilge level and the second was to mean Danger Sinking.[/QUOTE]
She was a neat ship, seen her several times in the Norfolk area. She was a twin hulled catamaran, painted white, powered by diesel-electric drives. Must have been an interesting adventure sailing her.