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Sub Sinks Tug Boat

March 22, 1986 off Midway Island, Pacific

USS SECOTA (YTM 415) loses power and collides with the stern planes of USS GEORGIA (SSGN-729) and sinks just after completing a personnel transfer.

The Tug pulled alongside the submarine to do a personnel transfer, and the engine died. the Submarine went hard starboard to try and sweep the stern to the left of the tug, but it was too late. Going to all stop wouldn't have done anything either, as it takes a sub a quarter mile to stop. as a result, topside procedures were changed to raise a "tug catcher" cleat near the rear of the boat in case they need to throw a line.

Ten crew are rescued, but two drown.

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Added: Apr-29-2010 
By: LiveLeak_Extreme
In: Arts and Entertainment
Tags: sub, sinks, tug, boat
Marked as: approved, featured
Views: 81523 | Comments: 88 | Votes: 21 | Favorites: 17 | Shared: 39 | Updates: 0 | Times used in channels: 2
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  • X Navy here also.
    The sub was not stopped, they were both moving. It did try to stop after the tug lost power and went out of control.
    It takes a while to get that much tonnage to stop.

    Posted Apr-30-2010 By 
    moefugger (2138.56)  

    (13)

    • Why don't you take another look at the video. If they were underway there would be water flowing between the two ships. There isn't, ergo they were stopped.

      Also, if you watch the part where they first look towards the stern of the sub, you can see the flurry of prop wash where the sub started moving. They went ahead before the tug was clear.

      The tug obviously lost power, you can see the tugs cooling water discharge stop and then the guy runs for the engine room and it restarts a few seco More..

      Posted Apr-30-2010 By 
      sinbad44 (82.80)

      (-1)

    • Spot on. The hard to starboard move simply dragged the tug along for the ride as she tried to back-paddle and ripped her all upside inside out. Dead most likely the engineers down below?

      Posted Apr-30-2010 By 
      Ohforfoxache (977.68)  

      (0)

  • ALL STOP WOULD HAVE SAVE THE TUG PERIOD.YES IT TAKES A WHILE TO STOP. BUT SUB FORCED THE STERN OF THE TUG UNDER. I'M A NAVY VET. WORKED TUGS AFTER THAT. IF TUG WAS SEALED,ALL WATER TIGHT DOORS BATTEN DOWN SHE WOULD HAVE NOT TAKEN ON WATER AND SUNK. THIS COULD HAVE BEEN PREVENTED.

    Posted Apr-29-2010 By 
    FISHHARD (10.40)  

    (9)

    • But it wasn't.. hence the vid & lessons learnt (at heavy cost)

      Posted Apr-30-2010 By 
      jozzilion (115.84)

      (2)

    • OK WE BELIEVE YOU, IT DOESNT HAVE TO BE IN CAPS TO PROVE IT!!! :)

      Posted Apr-30-2010 By 
      supermorbidlyobese (63.14)
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      (6)

    • Yes, at the beginning, you can see two people run into the back of the tug boat (presumably the engine room), and the doors are clearly wide open.

      Posted Apr-30-2010 By 
      shishkebab (3928.88)  

      (1)

    • Agreed- I worked tugs in NY Harbor, This one tug had a barge on the line , developed too much slack, barge passed the tug, line dragged bottom and turned the tug around. The tug was dragged backwards for several hundred feet until it filled with water and went down. This killed 2 sailors, if the hatches had been shut right after they started dragging backwards.................

      Posted Apr-30-2010 By 
      mdf54082000 (180.90)

      (1)

  • RIP to the drowned... :-(

    Posted Apr-30-2010 By 
    jakubkrcma (146.84)  

    (4)

  • Damn..musta tore it right open eh or did it compress the rear end under the water?

    Posted Apr-29-2010 By 
    InfiniteSense76 (49.62)  

    (3)

    • Yeah, I'd say it stove in all the planks on the port side.... Wooden tugs are good... but they are not meant to bounce up and down on big steel reefs.

      Posted Apr-30-2010 By 
      Tinkertailor (282.98)  

      (1)

  • It was probably to late but right at the 2:03 mark the tug did have power or was restarted. There is visible smoke from the stack and it looks like he is trying to push that poor diesel.

    I have seen this done a few times and normally the 2 vessels match speed for a bit while keeping a decent distance between them and then slowly angling together to make the transfer while underway.

    Posted Apr-29-2010 By 
    aussite (1797.30)  

    (3)

  • Former Coastie here,..and that was a pretty piss poor example of UNREP (under way replenishment). Should have been more distance between vessels. UNREP also involves cables connecting the vessels amid-ships for transfering goods, people, etc.
    The other obvious mistake was not having a cargo net to hang from the side of the sub to assist the sailors climbing aboard from the water.

    Posted Apr-30-2010 By 
    impulse_function (63.00)  
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  • cool find.

    Posted Apr-29-2010 By 
    blackrabbit66 (3840.12)  

    (2)

  • sad, rip to the 2

    Posted Apr-30-2010 By 
    firebird116 (16.64)  

    (2)

  • Get off the sub and have to get right back on.
    Plus they lost their outgoing mail.

    Posted Apr-29-2010 By 
    moefugger (2138.56)  

    (2)

  • If they are in American Coastal Waters, (as there is a tug boat there), why couldn't the Sub be at an all stop in the first place????

    They were doing a person transfer with both vessels moving, and then it all ends in tears.

    IS there a Navy thing where Subs have to keep going on the move??? Does anyone know???

    Posted Apr-30-2010 By 
    shishkebab (3928.88)  

    (2)

  • Just to set the record straight for those a"rmchair submariners"

    1) Diving the boat was NOT an option. Even if the sub was rigged for dive (which can take several hours), physically diving an Ohio class submarine can quite a while.

    2) It takes a bit of time to increase or remove speed from a vessel this size. Think about something as long as the Seattle Needle is tall. 16,000 tons is hard to stop once it's moving

    3) The safest way to do a transfer is when both vessels are mo More..

    Posted Apr-30-2010 By 
    andisnw (18.48)

    (2)

  • Damm. I can remember when this happened. Tug lost power and impaled itself on the vertical stabilizer of the stern plane. The two that died were the engineer down in the engine room and the 1st mate which you ca see running down to the engine room a time 00:45. The tug was a US navy tug manned by contracted civilians.

    Yes, USS Georgia was a SSBN (Ballistic Missle Sub) in 1986. Stern plan is a horizonal wing of sorts back by the rudder. Controls depth and attitude of the sub during submerged More..

    Posted Apr-30-2010 By 
    andisnw (18.48)

    (2)

  • At 3:47 one guy blurts out "there goes the mail." I think that's the least of their concerns.

    Posted Apr-30-2010 By 
    johng65 (33.70)  

    (2)

  • Comment of user 'cacknsack' has been deleted by author!

  • I was on the USS Florida (SSBN-728B) when this happened, we pulled into Pearl a couple months later and they showed this to prove how dangerous perstrans were. No, stopping the boat wouldnt have worked, and I believe we always did this kinda thing at a standard bell (~12kts I think) The tug was holed on(by) the vertical stabilizer, no saving her. As an aside, the dude in the dress whites was a good friend of my LPO

    Posted Apr-30-2010 By 
    snwbdrny65 (10.24)

    (2)