I served in the US Navy on active duty from September 1964 – December 1967. From March of 1965 – December 1967 I served on board the aircraft carrier USS Forrestal CVA 59. On 29 July 1967 while launching aircraft against North Vietnam a deadly fire broke out on the flight deck. 134 of my shipmates were killed and 163 were injured. I helped fight that fire and was lucky to have survived it. The year 2017 will mark the 50th Anniversary of the worst ship fire in Naval history.
USS Rupertus aiding firefighting efforts on USS Forrestal during the 1967 fire