(Excerpt from “The Last Gun Ship - History of USS Mullinnix DD-944” - A Historical Novel By Frank A. Wood)
December in Massachusetts is no picnic if you don’t have a warm fire, a good murder mystery, and a find glass of port to curl up with. You can look up “foul weather” in Webster’s and you’d no doubt find a picture of Boston Harbor in December. Miniature snow drifts could be found in every nook and cranny on the cold steel of Mullinnix’ surfaces. Condensation on her portholes sparkled like ice. All her outside surfaces slippery with ice. The heat from a Class ABLE fire in compartment 01-121-P-Q the cold afternoon of 5 December was no match for the frigid air as the fire party put it out as swiftly as it had started.
Destructive Storm Conditions are correlated to potential wind speed of the pending storm. The weather took a turn for the worse as the ship set Destructive Storm Condition II, giving a whole new meaning to ‘cold iron watches’. The storm abated early Friday morning, 12 December and the storm condition was cancelled at 0930 with the Mux no worse for wear.
Mullinnix ushered in the holiday season, still moored at pier 3W in Boston naval Shipyard, with little fanfare. Enough of the crew was on board to get the ship underway and to handle any emergencies. The rest, homeward bound to spend a few precious moments with family and friends. Moments that would turn to memories in the years to come. Memories, like little else, are a great physician to a sailor. Thus the first year of Mullinnix service to the nation came to a close. Anticipation still abound aboard the young ship. What would the new year bring? Indeed, what…
To be continued…
Merry Christmas!!!
http://www.ussmullinnix.org/HolidaysInTheNavy.html (turn your sound on)
Woody
Labels: dd 944, mullinnix, naval history, navy
