Our cover story on newsstands this week focuses on the accidental death of Personnel Specialist 1st Class (SW/AW) Regan Young, who was killed Nov. 23, 2011, aboard the amphibious assault ship Essex. That day, Essex was anchored off Bali, Indonesia, and Young had been sitting beneath a NATO Sea Sparrow launcher all the way aft on the ship, using his cellphone to make some calls before the ship weighed anchor. Around the same time, technicians began maintenance on the aft launcher. But they didn’t post the required safety observer, didn’t sound the warning bell and didn’t follow standard start-up procedures,…
Browsing: Mishaps
Announcements of annual safety campaigns may for many go in one ear and out the other, but the Naval Safety Center’s summer campaign, which officially begins Memorial Day weekend, is an opportunity for Navy leaders to hit the deckplates and hammer home the message that it’s possible to have fun without taking life-threatening risks. Last summer was the Navy’s safest on record. Still, 14 sailors and 14 Marines lost their lives in motor vehicle and recreational mishaps. That was a big improvement over the five-year average of 44 total off-duty deaths each summer. But still … Leaders can find all…
It’s been another busy week for the Navy. Here are seven stories in seven minutes from the past seven days that are worthy of notice: 1. Defense Bill passes HASC. This bill has tons of important stuff – far too much to put in this blog. You can check Monday’s edition of Navy Times for the complete scoop. But among the highlights is this news that lawmakers bucked the Pentagon’s 1.4 percent pay raise request, and looks to instead give service members a 1.9 percent boost. In addition, the bill aligns the 30-year shipbuilding plan with the QDR, which bodes well…
While perusing the Safety Center’s Website, I stumbled upon AlSafe message 077/09. It’s called a “summary of mishaps,” but reads like the nomination entries for the Darwin Award finalists. The collection of a “year of knuckleheadedness and numbskullosity” is further proof that we have plenty of youth – what we need to find is the Fountain of Smart. Kudos to the Safety Center staff, which has provided these examples of lessons learned in 2009: I will not find a stray snake, carry it home as a pet, and then try to play with it. I will not remove a .45…
