- 7 months ago
Seadragon (SS-194) During World War II, a great human drama unfolded in one of the slim, steel ships that roamed beneath the seas. It had little to do with the enemy, yet life and death were involved as certainly as if the vessel were under attack. Days out of Freemantle, Australia, and just after sinking an enemy freighter, a member of the crew of the USS Seadragon was stricken with acute appendicitis. An operation was imperative. Rising to the emergency, Pharmacist's Mate Wheeler B. Lipes, who had qualified only as a lab technician, assembled makeshift surgical tools, ether and a supply of alcohol drained from the sub's torpedoes. Then, he undertook "the big gamble" with the other man's life. Two and one-half hours after he began operating, some of the time under depth charge attack, Lipes successfully completed his surgery.
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Short filmTranscript
00:00A-ha-ha! A-ha-ha! A-ha-ha!
00:12Take a dance and hop in line
00:16Through the deep blue underneath the ocean
00:20We'll control the ocean wide
00:24From down, down underneath the sea
00:30Ivory Admiral Thomas M. Dyck is retired
00:33In the history of the submarine force, tales of courage are easy to find
00:38But courage is a strange commodity
00:41Under fire or under the pressure of danger to oneself
00:45Men will rise to unbelievable heights of heroism
00:48Yet there is another form, much more rare and consequently more impressive
00:53When with nothing personal to be gained
00:56A man will gamble against tremendous odds for something he believes in
01:00This is the story of such a man
01:09On 26 August 1942, the USS Sea Dragon, SS-194
01:14Departed Fremantle, West Australia on her fourth war patrol
01:19Destination to South China Sea
01:22To conduct an offensive patrol against enemy shipping
01:26With Lieutenant Commander Wesley E. Farrell of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania in command
01:31Sea Dragon proceeded to a assigned station via Lombok, Macassar, and Sibitu without incident
01:38Except for the usual number of bark shins and scraped knuckles
01:41Which were competently handled by pharmacist mate Wheeler B. Leipz
01:45Trained as a pharmacist mate, Leipz had been transferred to a service hospital in Philadelphia
01:50Where he qualified as a lab technician
01:53Earning a special rating as a cardiographer
01:56Before being assigned to submarines
01:58What's the matter? Is something wrong, Captain?
02:06Smokey, can't forget the feeling you should have stood in bed
02:09Yeah, I know what you mean
02:10We've been chasing our tails ever since we got here
02:12And we hadn't fired a single torpedo
02:14About a thing to shoot at
02:15Oh, it'll pick up, Captain
02:16There's got to be some targets someplace
02:18Eh, I don't know
02:19But I've got a hunch that's not going to be one of our more successful patrols
02:23Well, let's hope you're wrong
02:28What's the matter with you, Rector?
02:34Do you like my cooking?
02:36Well, it's not you, Cookie
02:37I just don't feel...
02:38If you don't want it, I do
02:40What's the matter, Rector, don't you feel well?
02:42Not too good, Doc, no
02:45I think I'll lie down for a little while
02:49Oh, it'll go
02:50Give me a hand
02:51Smoke off the starboard bow
03:05Right full rudder
03:06All ahead flank
03:07Come right to course zero, seven, zero
03:15Maybe you're right, Smokey
03:17Wouldn't be there are some targets left
03:21You're right
03:27Captain
03:28What is it, Leipzig?
03:29It's Rector, sir
03:31I think he may have appendicitis
03:36Appendicitis?
03:37Are you sure?
03:38No, sir, but he's got all the symptoms
03:41Nausea, temperature of 101, pains in the stomach
03:44Wouldn't it be just a bellyache?
03:46Yes, sir, it could be, but...
03:49What do we do if it is his appendix?
03:53Well, sir, we're a long way from Australia
03:58All right, Doc
03:59Keep a sharp eye on it
04:00Let me know if it gets any worse
04:01All right, Captain
04:05There are four engines on the line
04:07Sea Dragon race to close her target
04:09How does it feel, Rector?
04:11It's murder, Doc
04:13It's the granddaddy of all bellyaches
04:15Where's the pain? Any one spot?
04:17All over
04:18It comes and goes
04:21Right around here
04:26Take it easy, kid
04:27I'll be right back
04:28Stay with him
04:29I want to have another look at the carman's manual
04:40What's the radar range now?
04:4420,000 yards, Captain
04:45As the zig wants
04:48Smokey!
04:49Hold the plug!
04:50Aye, aye, sir
04:51Turn the bridge
04:52Dive, dive
04:54Let me know when the target gets to 10,000 yards of changes, Cor
05:02Aye, aye, sir
05:11Mikes
05:12How's Rector?
05:13Oh, Booth is with him
05:14I've been checking the manual
05:16He's got all the classic symptoms
05:18I'll just go take a look at him
05:24How do you feel, Rector?
05:33Not too good, Captain
05:36Pain still there?
05:39Hurts pretty good, Doc
05:42But not in the same place
05:45The cramps are gone now
05:47It's more of a steady pain right here
05:51Let me take a look
05:54I don't
06:10Is it?
06:11I'm afraid so, Captain
06:12I don't know what else it could be
06:14Oh, great
06:15It's just what we needed
06:18Well, you're the doc
06:19What do we do now?
06:21Well, we could try packing the area on ice
06:23With any luck
06:24We could prevent it from getting worse
06:27Give it a try
06:30Doc will have you on your feet in no time, Rector
06:32Can't have you loafing around
06:34I'll be all right, sir
06:35Just a bellyache
06:37Captain to the counting tower
06:38Captain to the counting tower
06:39Do what you can
06:40Let me know if there's any change
06:41Yes, sir
06:44See that he stays quiet
06:45I'm gonna get some ice
06:46All right
06:47You want some water or something, buddy?
06:48No, he doesn't
06:49Don't give him anything, understand?
06:50Well, you should, Doc
06:52You want some water?
06:58Ten thousand yards, Captain
06:59He hasn't changed course once
07:05Good
07:06Now, let's go
07:08Battle stations
07:22We're gonna need a lot more ice, Cook
07:24You better get on it
07:25Sure thing, Doc
07:26We'll beat it up, set eight feet
07:27Up scope
07:28We're gonna need a lot more ice, Cook
07:29You better get on it
07:30Sure thing, Doc
07:31I'll beat it up, set eight feet
07:32Up scope
07:34Computer depth's at eight feet.
07:35Obscope.
07:49Right down the middle.
07:51Standby, final observation and shoot.
07:54Angle on the bow.
07:56Sixty-foot.
07:58Bearing.
08:00Mark.
08:00Zero-one-five.
08:02Range.
08:03Mark.
08:04One-four-double-O.
08:06Set, shoot.
08:07Fire one.
08:11Fire two.
08:14Running time.
08:15Seven, six, five, four, three, two, one.
08:21Bingo!
08:25Super two, Bob.
08:26Take a look.
08:27I'm getting breaking up noises, Captain.
08:32Holy smoke.
08:33What's the matter?
08:34There's nothing there.
08:40Must have gone down like a rock.
08:42Down scope.
08:43Secure from battle stations.
08:44Secure from battle stations.
08:46Secure from battle stations.
08:52Any better?
08:59How's it going, Rector?
09:00I heard something awful, Captain.
09:05Excuse me, sir.
09:06Excuse me, sir.
09:26What was all that about?
09:27It's getting worse, Captain.
09:28A lot worse than that spot.
09:29It's getting more rigid.
09:30I'm afraid his appendix is going to burst.
09:33Doesn't stand much chance, does he?
09:35No, sir.
09:37Unless we operate.
09:41I think we'd better have us a talk, Doc.
09:46Calder, put those packs back where they were,
09:48and if you need more ice cook, you'll get it.
09:49And be gentle.
09:50I'll be right back.
09:51You bet, Doc.
09:52Sit down, Light.
09:59Light, you're a good pharmacist, mate.
10:01But you're not a doctor.
10:02How sure are you that an operation is necessary?
10:05According to the manual, what I learned in the hospital?
10:08Pretty sure, sir.
10:10You've got to be sure than that.
10:13Captain, unless Rector's operated on immediately,
10:15he won't live to do another patrol.
10:19Doc, when you say we can operate,
10:21you mean you.
10:24Unless there's somebody else aboard who's better qualified.
10:26No, there's nobody else.
10:28It's your baby.
10:30And you'll be gambling with a man's life.
10:33Yes, sir.
10:35Have you ever performed an operation like this?
10:38No, sir.
10:39I've only seen a couple in the hospital in Philadelphia.
10:42Now, Doc, if you try this, and Rector dies,
10:46nobody will be able to blame you.
10:48But you'll have to live with it the rest of your life.
10:51Captain, if I don't try this, and he dies,
10:54I'll have to live with that, too.
10:58All right, Doc.
11:01From here on in, the boat is yours.
11:04Anything you want, just holler.
11:05We'll give you all the help we can.
11:08Thank you, Captain.
11:09And, uh, Doc.
11:12Good luck.
11:13For the remainder of the night, there was no rest for those aboard the Sea Dragon
11:26who were involved in the history-making operation.
11:29In a situation where a veteran surgeon might well throw off his hands,
11:33pharmacist mate Wheeler B. Leipz quietly began his preparations.
11:36Alcohol was taken from the torpedo supply to make a sterilizing solution for the instruments to be used.
11:52With virtually no operating instruments at his disposal, Leipz was forced to draw on his own ingenuity
11:58and the memory of the operations he had seen to invent his own.
12:02For retractors, Leipz had to use spoons bent into the proper shapes.
12:12Extra hemostats were fashioned out of electrical clamps.
12:16Sulfur tablets were ground to powder for use as an antiseptic.
12:20His makeshift preparations as complete as he could get them,
12:33Leipz called his staff together for a final briefing.
12:36Lieutenant Charles C. Manning would act as chief nurse.
12:39The exec-Lieutenant Norville Ward would be chief assistant.
12:42Calder and Booth would administer the anesthetic.
12:45The skipper, Pete Farrell, would act as a roving troubleshooter.
12:48Now, his final decision made and his final orders being carried out,
12:59there was just time for a quick run through the corpsman's manual
13:03and a last check on his patient.
13:06Rector?
13:08Can you hear me?
13:10I hear you, Captain.
13:13You know, we've got to operate.
13:15Well...
13:19This isn't like giving you a couple of aspirin,
13:23or like sewing your head up the time you hit it on the hatch.
13:26This could be dangerous.
13:28You're my buddy, Doc.
13:30You won't let anything happen.
13:33Rector, listen.
13:35I've never done an operation before.
13:36If anything goes wrong, you may die.
13:43Quit worrying, Doc. I ain't gonna die.
13:47There's nothing to be afraid of.
13:50We'll both be all right.
14:0010-45, 11 September 1942, for Darrell Dean Rector, seaman first class.
14:06It was the point of no return.
14:10Control room.
14:12We're ready to go, Harry.
14:13Take it down to 120 feet.
14:15120 feet, yeah, yes, sir.
14:19Any time you're ready, Doc.
14:23Okay, boys.
14:36Easy, Rector.
14:38Breathe deep.
14:43Let's have a final check.
14:49You got everything you need, Doc?
14:52Scalpel.
14:54Scissors.
14:56Retractors.
14:58Needles, clamps, dividers.
14:59For a moment, the enemy above was forgotten, as the men of the Sea Dragon concentrated on the war one of their own was waging.
15:13A war in which they couldn't participate.
15:21And Bernie's point is halfway between the anterior superior spine of the right ilium.
15:25Um, that's right here.
15:33And the naval.
15:39Dividers?
15:45Yes?
15:46Level off at 120 feet kept.
15:48Very well.
15:51Harry?
15:52Sir?
15:56Keep her level.
15:57Keep her level, Captain.
16:01Stauber?
16:10I'll take that, Mr. Manning.
16:17I figure I'll need more room than a surgeon would, so I'm gonna make a three-inch incision.
16:21How is he?
16:25I'll call, Doc.
16:28I'll call, Doc.
16:31Towels.
16:56Scalpel.
16:57Scalpel.
17:21Sponge.
17:22Clamp.
17:23Mr. Warren.
17:24Gently, with almost slow-motion care, lights cut through the skin layer, through the subcutaneous fat.
17:25Gently, with almost slow-motion care, lights cut through the skin layer, through the subcutaneous fat.
17:27Retractors.
17:28Retractors.
17:29Gently, with almost slow-motion care, lights cut through the skin layer, through the subcutaneous fat.
17:34Reflectors.
17:35Retractors.
17:39Mr. Warren.
17:40Gently, with almost slow-motion care, lights cut through the skin layer, through the subcutaneous
17:50fat, through the three layers of muscle that lie underneath, and finally to the peritoneum,
18:09a tissue-thin covering that lines the abdominal cavity. Here, more than anywhere else, a slip
18:15of the scalpel could mean the patient's life.
18:20Retractors.
18:23Mr. Manning. Calder. Take over.
18:49You all right?
18:56I'll be okay, Captain. I guess it kind of got me for a minute.
19:01You better stay out there for a while. We can't have you keeling over in here.
19:04Yes, sir.
19:05Sound contact. Bearing. One, nine, five.
19:18Yes, what is it?
19:20Sound contact, Captain. Bearing, one, nine, five.
19:23Rig for silent running. Let me know if he gets close enough to worry about.
19:27All right, sir.
19:29I'm in the abdominal cavity, Mr. Ward. Can you get the lining under the retractors?
19:34The rest ought to...
19:39What is it, Lifes?
19:42It's appendix. It should be right here on top.
19:48It's not there.
19:57What do you mean, it's not there?
19:59Take it easy, Smokey.
20:01You didn't lose it on purpose.
20:03It's gotta be here someplace.
20:05Relax, Doc. You're doing a beautiful job.
20:12I'll find it.
20:14For what seemed like ours, Lifes probe cautiously but blindly.
20:18In a space just wide enough to admit two fingers,
20:21he searched for an object that only a trained surgeon would be expected to know by feel.
20:27They're shifting to short scale.
20:29Screw speeding up.
20:31Closing fast.
20:37Yes?
20:38Screw is closing fast, Captain.
20:40Rig for death, George.
20:47Got it.
20:48Clamp.
20:52Grab those retractors, Scalpel.
20:53Scalpel.
21:06Hold it.
21:12Lights!
21:13Shut up.
21:21Needle.
21:22Needle.
21:30Sofa.
21:30Vouшь.
21:31Scissors.
22:01Solve her.
22:07They were nearing the home stretch now, the infected appendix removed, Leipz continued
22:12towards the conclusion of the job, but even this close to the end, he would not be hurried.
22:22Slowly and painstakingly, he closed the incisions he had made, making sure that there would be
22:27no later infection or complications.
22:31Thirteen-twenty-two, two and a half hours after he had started.
22:35Solve her.
22:39Finished.
22:43Good boy, Leipz.
22:44It was a beautiful job.
22:47Boy, you can say that again.
22:50Any time I get a busted appendix, Doc, you can take him out.
22:54Doc, I want to cook you the best menu ever ate.
22:58Wait a minute, there's a clamp missing.
23:02No.
23:06I got it!
23:08Okay.
23:09You won't have to go back inside looking for it.
23:12Captain, it's a good thing that clamp isn't inside erector, because if it had been, it would
23:20just have to stay there.
23:22I couldn't go through that again.
23:24I'll be back in a moment with our special guest.
23:35It is our privilege to have with us the executive officer of the Sea Dragon during the events
23:40you've just seen, Captain N.G.
23:42Ward.
23:43Bob, when you decided years ago to become a submariner, I'll bet you never dreamed you'd
23:47become the chief assistant to a pharmacist mate in a major operation.
23:51I certainly didn't, but by then I had been in submarines long enough to know that anything
23:56can happen.
23:57And it usually does.
23:58It must have taken a great deal of courage for Leipzig to undertake that surgery, and
24:02for Rector to consent to it.
24:04Yes, and for the captain to authorize it.
24:08Rector must have been a pretty sick boy.
24:10He was.
24:11It didn't take more than one glance at him to know that something drastic had to be done,
24:15and quick.
24:16It's a tribute to Leipzig and to the training of our pharmacist mates that he was capable
24:21of doing such a fine job when he had to.
24:24Had there been any other course of action, we would have taken it, because the Navy doesn't
24:28condone operations by other than qualified doctors.
24:31Yes, I've seen him flown to some pretty remote places in emergencies.
24:36Of course, we were too deep in enemy waters for that.
24:40I understand Leipzig was promoted for his fine piece of work.
24:44Yes, he was, and he certainly deserved it.
24:47I couldn't agree more.
24:48Thank you, bub, for your visit.
24:53Please be with us again for another true story of the silent service.
24:57Take her down the top in line, through the deep blue underneath the ocean, we'll control the ocean's wide, from down, down underneath the sea.
25:22We'll take this boat, we'll pass the word, in the future's yet to be, that will stay as long as there's a submarine there underneath the sea.
25:38So ring for dive, and take her down, down, down, down, down, down underneath the ocean, there are men who'll find me down, in the deep blue underneath the sea.
25:56The End
25:58The End
26:00The End
26:02The End
26:03The End
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