Domenic A Calicchio News

The history of marine safety is soaked in water and written in blood. “I think that most people will tell you that changes in marine safety are almost exclusively disaster-driven,” agrees Dr. Josh Smith, a professor at Kings Point and interim director of the American Merchant Marine Museum. It hasn’t always been that way. Actually, it’s been worse. Despite some efforts early on to exert some control over shipping practices, going to sea has been accepted as a risky undertaking as long as man has floated vessels.

"Until the Sea Shall Free Them," an account of the sinking of the SS Marine Electric in 1983 and the rescue of some of its crew, is back in print after Blue Jacket press and the Naval Institute rolled press on a second printing. The book, used by maritime academies and USCG safety instructors, tells the story of how more than 30 men went into the cold waters off Virginia and how only three came back. The three men, lead by Captain Robert M. Cusick, then battled against great odds to reform the industry. They eventually succeeded with the help of Coast Guard Captain Domenic A. Calicchio.