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| Alaska Ranger - USCG Photo |
I worked on The Ranger during 9-11. I initially was recruited and sent to Dutch to work on a different boat for the FCA. I witnessed a attack of a white man by three Samoans who beat this man so bad he was transported to the hospital with 3 broken bones all in his face. I careful exited the boat at dawn and returned to the bunks to request a ride back to Seattle. I did approach the Captain for the boat to report my witnessing the attack. I was told to be quiet and if I did not I would most likely not make it back to Land once we set sail. I was marooned in a bunk house for 12 days before a Man came to me offering a job on a new boat "The Ranger" This man turned out to be the Captain who was notified by the Main office in Seattle about my issue with the abusive nature of the Deck Hands and the boo sons on the first boat. He promised me no unfair treatment and that his boat is run by Whites and that I would be protected because of the color of my skins. I thought about it for a day and decided I came to Alaska to test myself, and to go home now would only result in me looking back questioning why I didn't try it. I spent 42 days aboard the ship, and it was by far the hardest most grueling test of my life. We were not notified of 9-11 until early Oct and the word track the Captain used was we were at war with Afghanistan and that they attack the pentagon. No talk of the Trade Towers or any thing else. The Coast Guard boarded our boat before heading back into Dutch and before hand the Captain order all of us to throw away Beer, Pot, and Fish that we were not suppose to have cause it was out of season. I look back now knowing that boat was the scariest ride and realizing now that I was so close to danger makes me wonder how many other boats out there too share the same issues..
John S
Thanks for the comment John S.
K.C.
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