I remember a close call with a collision when we were docking once.
What's odd is I don't remember all the details that led up to it.
I do remember that the tug skipper was nicknamed 'Captain Crunch' and that we were light barge (no cargo on board) and that instead of having a load of gasoline on board we had gasoline bottoms because our last cargo had been gasoline.
Gas bottoms are far more dangerous than having an actual cargo on board. Gasoline itself will burn like hell. Gasoline vapors explode.
Parts of New York Harbor are a mish-mash of docks and while most are fairly simple, some places are a real hash.
Anyway we were docking and in front of us was a barge right smack dab in front of us. It was at a 90 degree angle to where we were supposed to tie up. and we were not slowing down!
I keyed the mic of the handi talkie and shouted "Back down hard!"
It was unnecessary because as I keyed the mic I saw black smoke coming from the tug's stack. I kept quiet afterwards because I knew he already had it figured out. I also knew him in that he sometimes got a bit panicky. If he went hard astern he'd likely part both face wires and both safety lines and we'd collide unchecked.
When the other guy I was with heard me shout to the skipper to back down he looked up from the deck line he was uncoiling and looked at me.
I pointed forward and shouted "Mister Kennedy!"
He looked to where I was pointing and his eyes widened and his jaw fell.
The deckhand off the tug was on top of it, calling the distance into the tug skipper as we slowly lost speed. We managed to stop with about 3 feet to spare.
Later my cohort asked me why I shouted "Mr. Kennedy!" He said for an instant he thought we were going to get rammed by a Japanese destroyer.
I told him I didn't know but it worked because I got his full attention.
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