By Forris Day Jr.
I’ve always found mechanical things fascinating, whether it’s something huge like an airplane, or small like a pencil sharper. It amazes me that humans have created things that are mechanical that help us in everyday life. You can probably relate to me in the sheer amazement of seeing a huge jumbo jet overhead and wondering “How does it stay in the air?”. It baffles the mind. Something I’ve never really thought about though, but is just as amazing, are submarines. Think about it…these are basically ships that are designed to sink. They are loaded with hundreds of people, all the mechanics to maintain life underwater and most, nowadays have a nuclear reactor on board. What is life on board one of these giants like? How do the sailors keep a supply of fresh air, food, and what do they do all day, when on patrol below the surface of the ocean for months on end?
Many of the answers are found in Richard A. Smith’s memoir “Emergency Deep – One man’s life in the submarine service”. Smith was a navy sailor in the early and mid-eighties on board the now retired nuclear sub “Skipjack”. The Skipjack is small compared to subs nowadays, at less than a football field long and 32 feet at its widest, but was one of the leaders in its time during the cold-war. In “Emergency Deep” you will learn what the daily life of a submariner was like aboard the Skipjack, the workload these sailors had, and the stress these military men endured while living hundreds of feet below the ocean’s surface, inside a steel tube. The tome follows Smith from childhood, through his years preparing to be a submariner, through his active duty years, right up until his retirement from “The Silent Service”, as it is known.
After reading this fascinating volume, I have a new appreciation for the people who guard our country and are away from their families for months on end. I felt like I was with Smith, as he studies for his exams, or “quals” as they are called in the Navy, questioning himself all the way as to whether he was good enough, smart enough or strong enough to become a member of this elite group. He was and is, but it certainly makes me look at myself and ask “Could I have done this?”. I am really not sure. The suicide rate is high for people in the submariner program I learned in my readings. At times the book was touching, sad, and funny as Smith has a twisted sense of humor that obviously got him through some very trying times.
Very well written in a manner that anyone can understand. Smith explains any technical thing that are mentioned so us civilians can follow along easily. Very tough to put down once you start reading. If you want to learn about how life on a sub was, and still is I’m sure, read Richard A.Smith’s intriguing book “Emergency Deep”.
Rating: 9/10 – “We all live in a yellow submarine”
Interview with Richard A. Smith on Scared Stiff Reviews