The Monica Smith, a 285-foot tanker from Stockholm, Sweden went aground in Provincetown in the vicinity of New Beach (Herring Cove Beach) during a winter storm in February, 1960.

Crewmembers of Northcape Towing & Marine Service, although not involved in the salvage efforts, were on-hand to observe and learn. We were, however, able to assist many sightseers who had gotten stuck in the sugar-like beach sand.

It was educational to watch the bulldozers working feverishly during the low tide cycles to get a "moat" dug around the stern to increase the water depth when the tide came in.

The U.S.C.G. Station Provincetown personnel used amphibious DUKWs to drag in towlines from the the tug "Orion" waiting offshore. One DUKW got stuck coming out of the water and the tide came in over it before they could save it. The were at least 2 and maybe 3 DUKWs and they all had great difficulty in the soft sand.

Probably the most important thing we learned wasn't so much what to DO in a situation like this, but rather what NOT to do. Every salvage job has its unique circumstances and challenges but experience helps the salvor to avoid mistakes caused or exacerbated by inexperienced oversight of a project. This was a valuable experience. Even from a distance.