Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1954-09-09

Spencer Tells
Of ketch Fight
With Hurricane
Commissioner Was
Cruising Maine Boy
With Family Of Five

commissioner samuel spencer
back at his desk after battling
hurricane Carol in a Maine bay
Aboard a 40-foot ketch whose
bows kept going under, the rain
soaked. spray drenched Commits
sioner's family spent four hours
under the pounding of winds
that raised 8-foot waves in their
harbor.
WED been on a cruise IL
Capsco Bay" he said. cts about
IS miles wide, near Portland.
It's full of peninsulas and is
lands. Beautiful place, They say
it has an island for every day
in the year.
Family Bunked Down.
The night of Monday a week
ago, Mr.. and Mrs. Spencer and
their two sons, IA and 10. and
daughter, IS, bunked down un-
concerned about Carol, which
was still loafing along far south
in the Atlantic.
Even the next morning, when
it was raining, we weren't really
apprehenSive," he said. They'd
never had a serious hurricane
up there in that part of Maine
this time of year."
At 1870 am, they heard
Boston radio broadcast about
Carols assault on Rhode Island.
Winds were much stronger than
anticipated.
up to then we expected just
a northeast wind of maybe 20
miles an hour, and rain" Mr..
Spencer said. That's nothing
to get excited about"
While they were listening to
the broadcast. the station an
nounced its transmitting tower
had just blown down.
ct was just about 100 miles
south of u.s." said Mr.. Spencer.
1T sounded fairly serious"
He tuned in a marine station
and learned then that Carol was
on her way, making so m.p.h.
I'VE got another anchor cable
out after that" said Mr.. Spen-
Ger. by l o'clock the full force
of the storm was there.
81 started the engine to take
some of the strain off the an
chors, but the boat started to
drag away. 1t looked like there
wasn't much chance of saving
her from the rocks.
"I got the children and my
wife on deck and got them all
into lifejacketS. I was in the
Navy and it's just routine in the
Navy for everybody to get a
jacket on when there's a storm
It's a pretty good idea"
Loses One Anchor.
The ketch was in a place called
Potts Harbor, roughly a mile
across, and the Spencers' cross
ing was rough. AS the winds
pushed her toward the rocks
the ketch lost her dinghy, ther
one of her two anchors.
I'VE were only two or three
boat-lengths from hitting the
shore when the one anchor
finally took hold" Mr.. Spencer
said.
1T took maybe Is minutes o
half hour for us to be dragged
across" the commissioner said
"One thing that was trouble
some was the cold. We wer'
soaking wet. Maine water i
cold, you know.
Kept Head Into Seas.
THE wind was very hard III
to about 2::30. Then it let III
about an hour and then it CAM
on hard again. I stayed at tn,
wheel. keeping her head int
these seas that kept coming.
thought we might save her tina
way.
I'VE were really cold. I KEEP
the family up on deck because
thought the kids might feel bet
ter if they weren't below at thu
time we started to break up, il
it came to that"
Near the end of the ordeal
when the wind let up a bit, my
wife went to the galley Ions
enough to fix hot tea and hot
chocolate.
"She handed me up a cup Of
tea with some bourbon whisky
in it," Mr.. Spencer said. But
only got sip or two. The wine
was still so strong it blew the
tea out of the cup"
Taken Ashore.
The ketch rode the storm ou
beautifully, he said. Finally
about $50 or 6 pm, a Coas
Guard crew rowed to the Spen'
GERS craft and took them ashore
Il wanted a man to sta,
aboard with me during the nigh
but they couldn't spare one," Mr.
Spencer said. But I was glat
to get my wife and kids on shor'
and I went with them.
I'VE were taken to a place VI
in the country. We spent a yer.
comfortable night. And the mex
morning was lovely. just lovely
with the sun shining and every
thing peaceful"