Until the Sea Shall Free Them: Life, Death and Survival in the Merchant Marine

Robert Frump's book is a fascinating, true story that reads like a gripping piece of fiction. It's half sea story, half courtroom-type drama and all page-turner.It's the tale of a part of American life most people know nothing about, including too many journalists and book reviewers: a saga of 1980s merchant seamen hungry for jobs, of a substandard ship that capsized in the winter sea and killed most of its crew, and of an investigation that would have quietly sunk, too, except for the courage of one of the survivors and a determined Coast Guard officer.Frump was the lead reporter on a Philadelphia Inquirer team that probed the sinking and the broader system in which it took place. His passion for the subject, even 20 years later, is evident. So, too, is the depth of his research, from details of the sinking to simple things like the feel of a ship's bridge at night."Until the Sea Shall Free Them" is well worth a read, whether or not you're a sea-saga aficionado. I covered the maritime industry for a business newspaper and worked in a port trade association for a number of years, and I thoroughly enjoyed the book. My wife, whose tastes run to classics and mysteries, was equally enthralled. Read it.

This book has everything! There's a harrowing sea rescue, riveting courtroom drama and some genuine American heroes. In this day of dirty corporate deals, executives taking big payouts while leaving their workers broke and out of work, coverups and questionable reporting, it's SO refreshing to read of men who were brave enought to take on the system and tell the truth. There's Bob Cusick- a hero if there ever was one- a 59-yr-old man, who after being dumped into the sea during one of the worst blizzards in recent times, and fighting his way back to life, risked his livelihood and reputation to tell why the ship went down; Jim McCann, a courageous Navy diver who refused to give up; Dom Calicchio, the Coast Guard board member whose ensured that the truth came out, knowing that his career would be destroyed; and the Philadelphia Enquirer team, who kept the story in the public eye- thanks to these men, the lives of countless American seamen have been saved.(Makes you think-next time you turn on a light or have a hot shower, remember the men and women who risked their lives to bring the coal to your power plant.)...As for the writing style, I was up way past my bedtime, I had to force myself to put down the book and turn off the light. The book is an absolute page turner. Personally, I can't wait for the movie- maybe Harrison Ford in the lead role! This is a story that deserves to be read.

What was the reviewer from Publishers Weekly smoking? I read the excerpt from Men's Journal, read the favorable Washington Post review Sunday and just finished the book. It is wonderfully written and a riveting story. Anyone interested in what really goes on in the Merchant Marine should read this story.

Robert Frump who with Tim Dwyer wrote an award wining series of articles entitled "Death Ships" about the American Merchant Marine and specifically the loss of the MARINE ELECTRIC for the "Philadelphia Inquirer" in 1983 has completed the story in his just published book "Until the Sea Shall Free Them - Life, Death, and Survival in the Merchant Marine." This book is a must read for anyone interested in marine safety, and should be required reading for every Coast Guard cadet, officer (including the Commandant), inspector, investigator - anyone responsible for the safety of life and property at sea. While the book is specifically about the loss of the MARINE ELECTRIC off the Virginia Capes in February 1983 and the survival of just three crewmembers it is more importantly the story of how 'the system' permitted an obviously unseaworthy vessel to go to sea and take the lives of 31 merchant mariners, including one young cadet who was just learning his way around the engine room. But there are heroes in this story - including the author himself who persevered to write this book. Chief mate Bob Cusick who decide that the truth would set him free and told it. And Coast Guard Captain Dom Calicchio who as a member of the Marine Board was determined to discover what really happened and why. And Navy rescue swimmers Jim McCann who when beyond exhaustion went back and back into turbulent seas to rescue or recover the ill-fated crewmembers. (As a result of this casualty Congress required the Coast Guard to establish its own rescue swimmer program, and required immersion suits (called exposure suits in the original legislation) on all vessels operating on cold waters regardless of whether they had covered lifeboats. The Marine Board's report on the loss of the MARINE ELECTRIC is the finest casualty report I have every read. But the book gives a behind the scenes look at what was going through the minds of the players. Enough said. Read the book.

I received the book on Friday in the 4pm mail. Finished it on Saturday, 4 pm. In between I kept stealing time to relish the quick pace of "Until the Sea Shall Free Them." Frump knows his stuff, but doesn't bog the book down with insider jargon. This is journalism, not academia, and it reads like a novel. Too bad the owners of the Marine Electric and the Coast Guard bigwigs wouldn't talk - the lawsuits are all settled and the book would have benefited from their insights. But after reading the book, you won't doubt that this is a ship, like so many other rust buckets, that simply should not go to sea. Thanks in large part to this kind of excellent journalism, they won't, and lives will be saved as a result.