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From: Capt. R. Metz
Location: Fl.
email: dgmetz@aol.com
Remote Name: 64.12.116.201
Date: 03.30.06
Time: 07:12:09 AM
I got another weather forecast and it was still the same, light winds and patchy fog. I told the deckhand we will have the same weather going back to the island. He suggested that we stay tied up until such time the fog lifted. “We could be here for days,” I replied waiting for the fog to clear. Lake Superior in the spring time has fog for weeks on end until the water warms up. And the island is just about out of fuel. So the decision was made to go and battle the fog once more. We headed back out into the lake and the fog was waiting for us just pass the light. I had the feeling that I hated to leave our warm comfortable Lily Pond as we passed the light and blowing foghorn. Soon we were engulfed with heavy wet fog and the horn was getting farther away behind us. My last look at the barges proved my suspicion was right, the barges were being pulled under water, white water was awash over the decks, the only thing I saw was the propane tanks setting upright and soon they disappeared into the fog. I was going to follow the same course back to the island only the reciprocal course which would be 002º. I had no idea what our new speed would be but I knew we would be slower because of the barges being towed under water. My deckhand lay down in his bunk for a little shuteye. I kept the tug slowly churning on its course for the island and figured what time I should start again with the security calls. After a few hours I reached down for the last pastie and gave a security call. It wasn’t very long when two vessels answered my call, one upbound and one downbound, here we go again I thought. I explained to both ships that we were not radar equipped and they would have to watch out for me. The closest ship said he could not see us on radar but I could hear his fog signals blowing. I knew he was close and I started blowing fog signals. I checked my speed down to an idle in hopes he would pass ahead of me as he had the right of way. He was close! Thoughts of a collision ran through my mind. What would happen if he ran over the two barges filled to the brim with 30,000 gallons of gasoline? I didn’t like this situation we were in and neither did the captain of the ship. He yelled over the radio that he finally picked up the tug by his radar but could not pick up the two barges. I knew he couldn’t because they were under water. I told him I had two barges in tow and the last barge was a 1000 feet behind the tug.