A Strange Whim of the Sea

On January 16, 1944, the submarine rescue vessel USS Macaw ran aground at Midway Atoll while attempting to get a towing line to the stranded submarine USS Flier . The Flier was pulled free six days later, but another three weeks of salvage efforts plagued by rough seas and equipment failures failed to dislodge the Macaw . On February 12, amid huge waves, the ship began to slip aft into deeper water. As night fell and the Macaw slowly sank, the twenty-two sailors on board—ship's captain Paul W. B