{"id":445,"date":"2020-12-11T21:52:11","date_gmt":"2020-12-11T21:52:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/mainemaritime.edu\/mariner\/issue2-2020\/?p=445"},"modified":"2020-12-28T19:58:37","modified_gmt":"2020-12-28T19:58:37","slug":"tale-of-two-comforts","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/mainemaritime.edu\/mariner\/issue2-2020\/features\/tale-of-two-comforts\/","title":{"rendered":"Tale of Two Comforts"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><style>\r\n.wp-caption-text {\r\nmargin-bottom:0;}\r\n<\/style>\r\n\u201cI was very taken emotionally,\u201d says Jerry Gotlieb \u201961, \u201cby seeing the USNS <em>Comfort<\/em>, (T-AH-20) entering New York Harbor on the morning of March 30, 2020 to provide aid during the COVID-19 crisis. The live TV broadcasts were outstanding and made me very proud.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAs many of my classmates remember,\u201d Gotlieb says, \u201cthe first TS <em>State of Maine<\/em> came to MMA in 1953 after it was converted from the WWII-era USS <em>Comfort<\/em> (AH-6), a 700-bed hospital ship. Our ship was the second hospital ship named <em>Comfort<\/em> (the first was a WWI hospital ship).<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe crew of the third <em>Comfort<\/em> showed exceptional piloting skills entering New York Harbor,\u201d Gotlieb says, and they brought the 894-foot vessel to Pier 90 where it served patients before departing April 30 for its homeport in Virginia to prepare for other potential disaster relief operations.<\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_451\" style=\"width: 870px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-451\" class=\"wp-image-451 size-full\" src=\"\/mariner\/issue2-2020\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/29\/2020\/12\/comfort-pic2.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"860\" height=\"436\" srcset=\"https:\/\/mainemaritime.edu\/mariner\/issue2-2020\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/29\/2020\/12\/comfort-pic2.jpg 860w, https:\/\/mainemaritime.edu\/mariner\/issue2-2020\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/29\/2020\/12\/comfort-pic2-300x152.jpg 300w, https:\/\/mainemaritime.edu\/mariner\/issue2-2020\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/29\/2020\/12\/comfort-pic2-768x389.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 860px) 100vw, 860px\" \/><p id=\"caption-attachment-451\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">USNS <i>Comfort<\/i> is the third hospital ship named <i>Comfort<\/i>. The second <i>Comfort<\/i> became the first TS <i>State of Maine<\/i>.<\/p><\/div>\n<p><em>Comfort<\/em> is under the command of Capt. Andrew Lindey \u201986 who has served as the Ship\u2019s Master since December, 2019.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI was fortunate to be a part of the recent COVID-19 mission in New York City,\u201d he says. \u201cIt was stirring to see firsthand the support and appreciation that the city had for <em>Comfort<\/em>. The last time the ship visited New York City was in response to 9\/11.<\/p>\n<p><em>Comfort<\/em> was originally sent to NYC to take the burden off of the local hospitals by taking non-Covid patients. \u201cThat quickly was modified to include COVID patients,\u201d says Lindey. \u201cIt is important to remember that Comfort\u2019s primary mission is to care for young military soldiers with combat casualties. The mission in NYC was much different with very sick, often terminally ill patients who required intensive care and ventilation. I was very impressed with the care that Comfort\u2019s military health care providers gave in New York.\u201d<\/p>\n<div class=\"videoBox\" style=\"margin-left: 0; width: inherit;\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/www.dvidshub.net\/video\/embed\/745004\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\"><\/iframe><\/div>\n<p class=\"wp-caption-text btm\" style=\"margin-top: -1.7em;\">Capt. Andrew Lindey \u201986 has been the Ship\u2019s master since 2019 and is responsible for keeping the vessel ready at a moment\u2019s notice for disaster and humanitarian relief.<\/p>\n<p>Since it was first converted from a San Clemente-class super oil tanker to a hospital ship in 1987, Comfort has provided humanitarian relief and been deployed to war zones around the world. It is one of two ships converted from tankers. The Navy\u2019s Mercy-class ships, <em>Mercy<\/em> (T-AH-19) and Comfort, were built in the mid-1970s as commercial tankers. In 1986-87 they became the Navy\u2019s first new hospital ships in 40 years.<\/p>\n<p>\u201c<em>Comfort<\/em> is a big girl at almost 900 feet long, 69,360 LT displacement, and 24,500 shaft horsepower,\u201d says Lindey. \u201cHer sea speed at 70 RPM is 15 knots. She has a traditional steam plant and auxiliary systems that support 2,440 souls onboard.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The ship and its sister ship <em>Mercy<\/em> are administered by the Military Sealift Command. Medical facilities include 1,000 beds, a dozen operating rooms, an ICU, laboratory, dental clinic, and more.<\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_478\" style=\"width: 870px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-478\" class=\"size-full wp-image-478\" src=\"\/mariner\/issue2-2020\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/29\/2020\/12\/comfort-pic7.jpg\" alt=\"Nurse on ship\" width=\"860\" height=\"511\" srcset=\"https:\/\/mainemaritime.edu\/mariner\/issue2-2020\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/29\/2020\/12\/comfort-pic7.jpg 860w, https:\/\/mainemaritime.edu\/mariner\/issue2-2020\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/29\/2020\/12\/comfort-pic7-300x178.jpg 300w, https:\/\/mainemaritime.edu\/mariner\/issue2-2020\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/29\/2020\/12\/comfort-pic7-768x456.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 860px) 100vw, 860px\" \/><p id=\"caption-attachment-478\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">A nurse surveys the damage.<\/p><\/div>\n<p>The hospital ships served in Operations Desert Shield and Iraqi Freedom and have responded to Hurricane Katrina, humanitarian crises in the Caribbean and Pacific, and other catastrophic events.<\/p>\n<p><em>Comfort<\/em> is currently in a reduced operational status in Norfolk and ready for tasking within five days. The ship is minimally crewed with 60 Navy sailors and 37 civil service mariners. Lindey says <em>Comfort<\/em> is scheduled to deploy next summer in continuing humanitarian missions in Central and South America.<\/p>\n<p>For Jerry Gotlieb, the TV coverage of <em>Comfort<\/em> in New York brought memories of the former <em>Comfort<\/em> that served as an MMA training vessel.<\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_462\" style=\"width: 870px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-462\" class=\"size-full wp-image-462\" style=\"border: 1px solid #dadada;\" src=\"\/mariner\/issue2-2020\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/29\/2020\/12\/comfort-pic4.jpg\" alt=\"comfort at dock\" width=\"860\" height=\"621\" srcset=\"https:\/\/mainemaritime.edu\/mariner\/issue2-2020\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/29\/2020\/12\/comfort-pic4.jpg 860w, https:\/\/mainemaritime.edu\/mariner\/issue2-2020\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/29\/2020\/12\/comfort-pic4-300x217.jpg 300w, https:\/\/mainemaritime.edu\/mariner\/issue2-2020\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/29\/2020\/12\/comfort-pic4-768x555.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 860px) 100vw, 860px\" \/><p id=\"caption-attachment-462\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">During World War II, <i>USS Comfort<\/i> was struck by a Japanese suicide plane.<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"ship-feature-img\" style=\"margin-bottom: 7px;\"><\/div>\n<p>\u201cIt was a WW-II era hospital ship, battle-scarred but capable, that became the first training ship named <em>State of Maine<\/em>,\u201d Gotlieb says. (MMA presently trains midshipmen aboard the fourth TS <em>State of Maine<\/em>, the former USNS <em>Tanner<\/em>.)<\/p>\n<p>Measuring 417 feet, 9 inches long with a beam of 60 feet, the USS <em>Comfort<\/em> (AH-6) was launched in 1943 by Consolidated Steel Corporation. The ship was steam powered from two water tube boilers and driven by a single propeller.<\/p>\n<p><em>Comfort<\/em> was one of three hospital ships built at the same time, commanded and crewed by the Navy for the Army.<\/p>\n<div class=\"ship-feature-img\" style=\"background: #f2f2f2; padding: 1em; margin-bottom: 14px;\">\n<h2 style=\"font-family: 'museo-sans',sans-serif;\">Multi-Mission Capable<\/h2>\n<p>The future training ship of MMA is planned to be a complement to vessels that provide humanitarian aid such as Comfort and Mercy.<\/p>\n<p>The Maritime Administration (MARAD) is currently working with Philly Shipyard in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania to begin building the first of five purpose-built training vessels for the State Maritime Academies. These purpose-built ships will be National Security Multi-Mission Vessels (NSMV), outfitted as both training platforms and disaster response vessels.<\/p>\n<p>The NSMV is a new class of ship, designed with eight classrooms, a full training bridge, lab spaces and an auditorium. In training ship mode, the vessel can accommodate 600 students and crew. The vessel is also designed to respond to national and international disasters, as the TS State of Maine did in response to Hurricane Katrina in 2005.<\/p>\n<p>The NSMV includes two separate engine rooms providing significant spaces for engine training. Plans call for the ship to house up to 1,000 workers and crew in times of humanitarian need. It will have roll-on\/roll-off capability, container storage, full hospital facilities, and a helicopter landing pad.<\/p>\n<p>The third NSMV is slated to become the new TS State of Maine, replacing the current vessel, the former USNS Tanner, which has been in operation at Maine Maritime since 1997.<br \/>\n<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-full noborder\" src=\"\/mariner\/issue2-2020\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/29\/2020\/12\/comfort-pic5.jpg\" alt=\"New NSMV rendering\" width=\"800\" height=\"433\" \/><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>During the war, <em>Comfort<\/em> served across the Pacific, but in May 1944 was struck by a Japanese suicide plane. The plane dove into the <em>Comfort\u2019s<\/em> superstructure, smashing through two decks. All but one person in an operating room was killed. Fatalities throughout the ship totaled 28, including six nurses, and 48 were injured.<\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_558\" style=\"width: 274px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone sideImageR\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-558\" class=\"size-full wp-image-558\" src=\"\/mariner\/issue2-2020\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/29\/2020\/12\/comfort-pic9.jpg\" alt=\"Comfort in New York Harbor\" width=\"264\" height=\"237\" \/><p id=\"caption-attachment-558\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">The last time USNS Comfort visited New<br \/>York was in the wake of the terror attacks<br \/>of 9\/11.<\/p><\/div>\n<p><em>Comfort<\/em> was repaired and sailed on to earn two battle stars and a 20-year career that eventually brought it to Castine and MMA.<\/p>\n<p>According to\u00a0<i>Heritage of the Sea, The Training Ships of Maine Maritime Academy<\/i>, by Capt. Walter Jaffee, in 1953, Senator Margaret Chase Smith and Senator Leveret Saltonstall of Massachusetts arranged for the acquisition of the ship for MMA.<\/p>\n<p>In the book, Charles Weeks \u201964 observes: \u201cShe looked like the old passenger ships. She had a main deck, boat deck and sun deck. Because she was a hospital ship, she had an additional boiler. She was triple on everything engineering-wise and the propulsion was a 4,400 horse Hendy turbine. She\u2019d do about 14.6 if they wanted to hook her up. It made a good training system for the engineers \u2026 because you could be steaming on two boilers and playing with a third one.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>During its nine training cruises from 1954 to 1962, the former <em>Comfort<\/em> called on ports ranging from the Atlantic coast and Caribbean to Europe, South America, Panama Canal and the Pacific.<\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_479\" style=\"width: 870px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-479\" class=\"size-full wp-image-479\" src=\"\/mariner\/issue2-2020\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/29\/2020\/12\/comfort-pic8.jpg\" alt=\"1961 State of Maine summer cruise at dock\" width=\"860\" height=\"423\" srcset=\"https:\/\/mainemaritime.edu\/mariner\/issue2-2020\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/29\/2020\/12\/comfort-pic8.jpg 860w, https:\/\/mainemaritime.edu\/mariner\/issue2-2020\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/29\/2020\/12\/comfort-pic8-300x148.jpg 300w, https:\/\/mainemaritime.edu\/mariner\/issue2-2020\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/29\/2020\/12\/comfort-pic8-768x378.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 860px) 100vw, 860px\" \/><p id=\"caption-attachment-479\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">As a midshipman, Jerry Gotlieb \u201961 sailed aboard the ex-Comfort renamed TS <i>State of Maine<\/i> on training cruises.<\/p><\/div>\n<p>\u201cMy class made three training cruises aboard the ship\u20141959, 1960 and our graduation year,\u201d Gottlieb says.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIn 1960, we got to transit the Panama Canal, from the Atlantic side to the Pacific. The swells we encountered off the Pacific coast were wild, while the sky was as blue as could be. The <em>State of Maine<\/em> would travel down a deep swell, hit the bottom of the wave, shudder and finally climb out of the trough to the next swell. We took water over the bow and sometimes up to the bridge deck. A wild ride in gorgeous sunshine.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe <em>State of Maine<\/em> (ex-<em>Comfort<\/em>) was a great learning tool, laboratory and training for all our lives ahead,\u201d Gotlieb says.<span class=\"articleEnd\">\u2588<\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"ship-feature-img\" style=\"background: #f2f2f2; padding: 1em; margin-bottom: 14px;\">\n<h2 style=\"font-family: 'museo-sans',sans-serif;\">Have Mercy<\/h2>\n<p>Andrew Slater \u201912 was Second Engineer aboard the sister ship of USNS Comfort, USNS Mercy (T-AH-19), when it was deployed to Los Angeles in April, serving the same role on the West Coast as the Comfort did in New York.<\/p>\n<p>Until his service aboard Mercy, Slater was steam second engineer aboard Comfort.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIn early March, talk began about activating both hospital ships to combat the Coronavirus outbreak,\u201d Slater says. \u201cThe Mercy chief reached out, trying to find ready and qualified engineers to run one of the few steamships in our fleet.<\/p>\n<p>Slater had just come off a five-month stretch aboard Comfort on a humanitarian mission, Operation Enduring Promise, which provided medical aid to some dozen countries in the Caribbean and South America to relieve the burden from local medical providers due to the Venezuelan refugee situation.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone noborder size-full\" src=\"\/mariner\/issue2-2020\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/29\/2020\/12\/comfort-pic6.jpg\" alt=\"Andrew Slater on boats\" width=\"860\" height=\"450\" \/><\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhen we returned to homeport, we rolled right into a major overhaul in the shipyard, and I had to get to work with contractors on needed boiler inspections. After all that, and the long mission, we had wrapped things up in early March, and I had my eye on going ashore.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Instead, Slater joined the Mercy deployment in LA for three months.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI\u2019m proud to have been involved with both teams of engineers,\u201d he says, \u201cit was an exciting opportunity for sure.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p><span class=\"photoCredit2\">Photos: Shutterstock, Wikipedia, MARAD, courtesy of Jerry Gotlieb, courtesy of Andrew Slater<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>\u201cI was very taken emotionally,\u201d says Jerry Gotlieb \u201961, \u201cby seeing the USNS <em>Comfort<\/em>, (T-AH-20) entering New York Harbor on the morning of March 30, 2020 to provide aid during the COVID-19 crisis. The live TV broadcasts were outstanding and made me very proud.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAs many of my classmates remember,\u201d Gotlieb says, \u201cthe first TS <em>State of Maine<\/em> came to MMA in 1953 after it was converted from the WWII-era USS <em>Comfort<\/em> (AH-6), a 700-bed hospital ship. Our ship was the second hospital ship named <em>Comfort<\/em> (the first was a WWI hospital ship).<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe crew of the third <em>Comfort<\/em> showed exceptional piloting skills entering New York Harbor,\u201d Gotlieb says, and they brought the 894-foot vessel to Pier 90 where it served patients before departing April 30 for its homeport in Virginia to prepare for other potential disaster relief operations.<\/p>\n<p><em>Comfort<\/em> is under the command of Capt. Andrew Lindey \u201986 who has served as the Ship\u2019s Master since December, 2019.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI was fortunate to be a part of the recent COVID-19 mission in New York City,\u201d he says. \u201cIt was stirring to see firsthand the support and appreciation that the city had for <em>Comfort<\/em>. The last time the ship visited New York City was in response to 9\/11.<\/p>\n<p><em>Comfort<\/em> was originally sent to NYC to take the burden off of the local hospitals by taking non-Covid patients. \u201cThat quickly was modified to include COVID patients,\u201d says Lindey. \u201cIt is important to remember that Comfort\u2019s primary mission is to care for young military soldiers with combat casualties.<\/p>\n<p><a class=\"more-link\" href=\"https:\/\/mainemaritime.edu\/mariner\/issue2-2020\/features\/tale-of-two-comforts\/\">&#8230;Read More<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":493,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[12],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/mainemaritime.edu\/mariner\/issue2-2020\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/445"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/mainemaritime.edu\/mariner\/issue2-2020\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/mainemaritime.edu\/mariner\/issue2-2020\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mainemaritime.edu\/mariner\/issue2-2020\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mainemaritime.edu\/mariner\/issue2-2020\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=445"}],"version-history":[{"count":47,"href":"https:\/\/mainemaritime.edu\/mariner\/issue2-2020\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/445\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":615,"href":"https:\/\/mainemaritime.edu\/mariner\/issue2-2020\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/445\/revisions\/615"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mainemaritime.edu\/mariner\/issue2-2020\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/493"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/mainemaritime.edu\/mariner\/issue2-2020\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=445"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mainemaritime.edu\/mariner\/issue2-2020\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=445"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mainemaritime.edu\/mariner\/issue2-2020\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=445"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}