Magical storm in the Adriatic
One of the most exciting experiences on the Vetch was an electrical storm that happened whilst we escorted a small convoy of 3 ships in the southern Adriatic – there was also an ML acting as a tail-end-charlie escort…
The storm was quite short in duration. Lasting about forty hours over two nights and commenced with a very high swell that was slow and sickly looking that indicated to our navigator and us that things could get much worse. It was first observed a long way off as much as thirty miles by the lightning.
When it eventually arrived the sea was a boiling cauldron of misshaped waves, what appeared to be holes in the sea, whirlpools etc. with no discernible pattern compared to a vicious storm in the Atlantic - that has a semblance of conformity about it but with much higher waves than the Adriatic. I prefer the Atlantic as one thinks you can read it better as the water was a very confused mass and rather freakish. The big difference was the ship I was on. The corvette gives one a lot more confidence than the destroyer in the Atlantic, disregarding the handling by the respective crews.
We lost contact with all the ships except the ML that hung around within 12 miles of us the first night but dispersed the second night. The storm appeared to be travelling in an elliptical pattern and returned twice giving us two long respites to put things in order.
When the storm was upon us we were communicating by visual signal lamp with the ML by focussing the lamps beams on the base of the clouds. The clouds were similar to the sea conditions too, all a confused mass and density the way they absorbed the beam in different amounts - totalling obscuring the beams at times. They were also various colours from the lightning above the clouds and down through to sea level. I witnessed more ultra violet in my middle watch on the first night than the rest of my life and that includes an electrical storm I witnessed in Alberta, Canada in 1978. It could be classed as virtually continuous for close on two hours of the watch, and spasmodically for the rest of the time.
The holes in the sea appeared to be irregular circular waterfalls and the ship certainly shuddered when dropping into one, but I have been unable since to find an explanation of how this phenomenon occurs. The largest I saw was about half the length of the ship or was it imagination as they were seen in the light cast by the lightening which was continuous bolts from many angles, mixed with terrific sheet and fork lightening that completely lit up the entire sea. The ship progressed in some awesome slips to port and starboard and at one time one of the officers suggested tying me to the lamp due to the amount of water we were shipping and I must admit I was close enough to the sea at times to see old Neptune!
One very good thing was the water was quite warm and pleasant and no head gear was used. A towel was wrapped around the neck with an oilskin overcoat sufficed over light gear. My night woollen jumper has been removed earlier due to the warm atmosphere in the initial build up to the storm.
There was more crew down with seasickness that first night than any other time in my naval life. I should guess at least 60 to 70% were down. It commenced with the high swell that affects numerous people and upsets them so much. At one time I was on the bridge the 1st LT was giving orders to clear certain exits where seasick personnel had congregated to get a breath of fresh air away from the stinking messes. A number of the crew were said to be barely conscious, sprawled in the flats and corridors. There would be a couple of spare tots being offered around later that day (not allowed due to KRs and AIs on the Nelson) but okay on a small ship. Who would be on a big ship in harbour and miss a grand storm like this, only the 60-odd percent that were sea sick, poor sods, but how about a nice streaky fat bacon sandwich…?
The culmination of this short, hectic period was all ships returned to port (different ones) under their own steam I am glad to say, as I was getting the feeling of being a Jonah having lost the Yanks in the Channel and now this episode. I often thought of the ML – must have been in good hands to come through the storm unscathed, but she was the latest design I noted with a truncated tower replacing the mast that meant she would have powerful engines.
I guess the Adriatic Sea must be very shallow considering the muddy brown colour of the sea for a few days after the storm. Seaweed and other plants were also in abundance having been ripped off the seabed. There was also a proliferation of sea mines torn from their anchors, 8 or 9 were spotted in the following fortnight of which only one was destroyed by gun fire and a general warning signal was issued by the Admiralty as a precaution.
The storm was quite short in duration. Lasting about forty hours over two nights and commenced with a very high swell that was slow and sickly looking that indicated to our navigator and us that things could get much worse. It was first observed a long way off as much as thirty miles by the lightning.
When it eventually arrived the sea was a boiling cauldron of misshaped waves, what appeared to be holes in the sea, whirlpools etc. with no discernible pattern compared to a vicious storm in the Atlantic - that has a semblance of conformity about it but with much higher waves than the Adriatic. I prefer the Atlantic as one thinks you can read it better as the water was a very confused mass and rather freakish. The big difference was the ship I was on. The corvette gives one a lot more confidence than the destroyer in the Atlantic, disregarding the handling by the respective crews.
We lost contact with all the ships except the ML that hung around within 12 miles of us the first night but dispersed the second night. The storm appeared to be travelling in an elliptical pattern and returned twice giving us two long respites to put things in order.
When the storm was upon us we were communicating by visual signal lamp with the ML by focussing the lamps beams on the base of the clouds. The clouds were similar to the sea conditions too, all a confused mass and density the way they absorbed the beam in different amounts - totalling obscuring the beams at times. They were also various colours from the lightning above the clouds and down through to sea level. I witnessed more ultra violet in my middle watch on the first night than the rest of my life and that includes an electrical storm I witnessed in Alberta, Canada in 1978. It could be classed as virtually continuous for close on two hours of the watch, and spasmodically for the rest of the time.
The holes in the sea appeared to be irregular circular waterfalls and the ship certainly shuddered when dropping into one, but I have been unable since to find an explanation of how this phenomenon occurs. The largest I saw was about half the length of the ship or was it imagination as they were seen in the light cast by the lightening which was continuous bolts from many angles, mixed with terrific sheet and fork lightening that completely lit up the entire sea. The ship progressed in some awesome slips to port and starboard and at one time one of the officers suggested tying me to the lamp due to the amount of water we were shipping and I must admit I was close enough to the sea at times to see old Neptune!
One very good thing was the water was quite warm and pleasant and no head gear was used. A towel was wrapped around the neck with an oilskin overcoat sufficed over light gear. My night woollen jumper has been removed earlier due to the warm atmosphere in the initial build up to the storm.
There was more crew down with seasickness that first night than any other time in my naval life. I should guess at least 60 to 70% were down. It commenced with the high swell that affects numerous people and upsets them so much. At one time I was on the bridge the 1st LT was giving orders to clear certain exits where seasick personnel had congregated to get a breath of fresh air away from the stinking messes. A number of the crew were said to be barely conscious, sprawled in the flats and corridors. There would be a couple of spare tots being offered around later that day (not allowed due to KRs and AIs on the Nelson) but okay on a small ship. Who would be on a big ship in harbour and miss a grand storm like this, only the 60-odd percent that were sea sick, poor sods, but how about a nice streaky fat bacon sandwich…?
The culmination of this short, hectic period was all ships returned to port (different ones) under their own steam I am glad to say, as I was getting the feeling of being a Jonah having lost the Yanks in the Channel and now this episode. I often thought of the ML – must have been in good hands to come through the storm unscathed, but she was the latest design I noted with a truncated tower replacing the mast that meant she would have powerful engines.
I guess the Adriatic Sea must be very shallow considering the muddy brown colour of the sea for a few days after the storm. Seaweed and other plants were also in abundance having been ripped off the seabed. There was also a proliferation of sea mines torn from their anchors, 8 or 9 were spotted in the following fortnight of which only one was destroyed by gun fire and a general warning signal was issued by the Admiralty as a precaution.