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Over these past few weeks, I've struggled to prepare for four separate September 11th-related projects and events: writing a story about mariners' crucial role in the aftermath of the towers' collapse (I'll post the link shortly), a private commemoration aboard...
The news about the impact of Hurricane Irene on the Manhattan waterfront was grim so we fired up engines aboard fireboat John J. Harvey at 0500 on Saturday morning and headed upriver with a skeleton crew (Huntley Gill, Karl Schuman, John Browne, Tommy Whyte, and I),...
What a pleasure to stumble across this post, "If It Were Easy, Everyone Would Do It," by Ry M. Sal on her For the Birds blog. Sal writes: "I haven’t had the pleasure of riding on a tugboat yet… but after reading My River Chronicles, by Jessica DuLong — I have a...
The April 19th issue of The New Yorker features a story about tugboats and tugboaters called "Towheads: The far-flung adventures of a tugboating family" by Burkhard Bilger. It's a great read. But I have to admit I had a little mamma-bear moment when I...
I wrote about the SS United States in a post a few months back. Today the stakes are higher than ever before. At this moment, scrappers are bidding for a chance to cut up the 1952 ocean liner. A decision may be handed down before the end of the month. ...
For an engineer on an old fireboat that came back to life after being sold for scrap, this Boston Globe story by David Filipov, about an aging fireboat that "has responded to thousands of distress calls in its half-century of service" and is now poised...
The bucket of water I left in the engine room of Fireboat John J. Harvey to gauge real temperatures in the oldest, most rudimentary way known to man has an inch of water at the top. Can't imagine what's happening in the 78-year-old pipes that we can't drain...
I'm so grateful to the Gotham Cener for New York City History for posting an excerpt from Chapter 1 of My River Chronicles on their fascinating Gotham History Blotter, "devoted to showcasing short, non-fiction essays about New York City history." Here's...
During her decades of FDNY service, fireboat John J. Harvey fought hundreds of serious fires, explosions, and marine disasters. One was aboard the ammunition ship El Estero. In 1943 fireboat Harvey and fellow FDNY vessel Fire Fighter went into harm's way...
I'm so grateful for all the warm messages I continue to receive from readers all over the country (and even overseas!) who are moved by the unforgettable people and captivating places whose stories I've had the privilege to tell in My River Chronicles, and who...