Ten Hours Until Dawn: The True Story Of Heroism And Tragedy Aboard The Can Do

The Story

In the midst of the Blizzard of 1978, the tanker 'Global Hope' floundered on the shoals in Salem Sound off the Massachusetts coast. The Coast Guard heard the Mayday calls and immediately dispatched a patrol boat. Within an hour, the Coast Guard boat was in as much trouble as the tanker, having lost its radar, depth finder, and engine power in horrendous seas. Pilot boat Captain Frank Quirk was monitoring the Coast Guard's efforts by radio, and when he heard that the patrol boat was in jeopardy, he decided to act. Gathering his crew of four, he readied his forty-nine-foot steel boat, the 'Can Do, ' and entered the maelstrom of the blizzard.Using dozens of interview and audiotapes that recorded every word exchanged between Quirk and the Coast Guard, Tougias has written a devastating, true account of bravery and death at sea. In the midst of the Blizzard of 1978, the tanker 'Global Hope' floundered on the shoals in Salem Sound off the Massachusetts coast. The Coast Guard heard the Mayday calls and immediately dispatched a patrol boat. Within an hour, the Coast Guard boat was in as much trouble as the tanker, having lost its radar, depth finder, and engine power in horrendous seas. Pilot boat Captain Frank Quirk was monitoring the Coast Guard's efforts by radio, and when he heard that the patrol boat was in jeopardy, he decided to act. Gathering his crew of four, he readied his forty-nine-foot steel boat, the 'Can Do, ' and entered the maelstrom of the blizzard. Using dozens of interview and audiotapes that recorded every word exchanged between Quirk and the Coast Guard, Tougias has written a devastating, true account of bravery and death at sea. 'I was a college senior in Providence, Rhode Island, during the Blizzard of '78---a meteorological holocaust of snow and wind that I'll never forget. To learn twenty-six years later that there were men brave enough to attempt a rescue at sea during that storm still has me awestruck with wonder. Michael Tougias's 'Ten Hours Until Dawn' tells their story---an incredible tale of heroism and sacrifice.' ---Nathaniel Philbrick, author of the National Book Award winner and 'New York Times' bestseller 'In the Heart of the Sea' 'With a steady hand, Michael Tougias draws us into the vortex of this historic winter storm of 1978 and a high-seas rescue attempt gone wildly awry. The dynamics of this adventure alone would make it well worth the journey. But as a writer, Tougias's true gift is his ability to plumb the depths of human emotion, to take us ever deeper into the hearts of those who survived the ordeal---and even into the lives of those who did not. He re-creates not only the superhuman efforts between the imperiled crewmen and their would-be rescuers, but the gut-wrenching experience of their loved ones waiting helplessly ashore. In this he clearly succeeds. We come away feeling that we know these people, that we understand what it must have been like for them, and our hearts go out to them.'---Spike Walker, bestselling author of 'Coming Back Alive' and 'Working on the Edge''What a story! Tougias's research and writing make the reader feel as if he is onboard the 'Can Do' during the Blizzard of '78. 'Ten Hours Until Dawn' is a gripping book about a fascinating event of courage and tragedy that few people, including those of us who were deeply involved in fighting that storm, know enough about.'---Michael Dukakis