I spent from November 1983 to November 1986 stationed at Centerville Beach. I remember when I arrived there the Master Chief of the Command had a picture of a car sitting down in a farmers field. I am pretty sure I know the person that owned this car but was kinda of wondering who was driving it and did he get badly injuired while driving it. I never got it out of the person weather or not it was him driving it when it came to rest in the field. ( It actually looked like an exact copy of the General Lee in that Dukes of Hazzard show.)
The other thing I always wanted to know is did anybody get injured real bad over the years on that road. Some of us observed care when driving that road. Some were not so careful. I also heard during those years that farmer did not have to replace his fence since they had plenty of sailors that were not real careful when driving and took out a portion of his fence line from time to time.
I remmber that around 1976 a seabee on temp. duty to centeville was killed on the road. I also have some scares from totaling my motorcycle on that road in 75.
During my stint at CVB, which lasted from September 1981 until March 1984, there was one tragic accident, involving four Naval personnel, of whom three were OT's. One vehicle containing two enroute to a MidWatch collided with a car containing two heading toward Ferndale. The two heading to base were seriously hurt, while the two in outbound car suffered fatal injuries, the driver dying at the scene, with OTSN Michelle Orvis being taken to Eureka hospital where she passed on a few days later.
Some time before this, there was a several day-long drug/alcohol seminar held on base at which I and the driver of the car in which Michelle was riding attended. I vividly recall him storming out of one session, not to return, loudly stating that the topic was a waste of his time. He was intoxicated at the moment of his death.
I was there from 86-89. I remember the road very well. The weather combined with the road really made it treacherous sometimes. Getting off of a mid-watch sometimes made it even more of a challenge! At least it wasn't made out of ground coral like the roads in Guam were!
Centerville Beach Road "and the Ferndale people".
Reading the above postings reminded me of a related experience I had - and is documented in "Our Book", that I would again like to share with you:
1969 – NavFac Centerville Beach “Another Act of Kindness by Ferndale”
We had a young OT3 whose young wife got killed driving out to the base. We were in the funeral preparation stage (her Mom was there to take her home etc.) when “her” Navy allotment check arrived in the mail. No direct deposit or bank account. In those days, one normally had to cash it in person at a local store or bank etc. The money was desperately needed… The dilemma, how to cash the check in town when everyone knew she had passed away… I took the unsigned check to see if I could convince anyone in town to cash it under those circumstances. I went into the first store that I saw was open (liquor store) – the man behind the counter heard me out and without hesitation, cashed the “semi-forged” check…(Ed Smock OTCM NavFac Centerville Beach)
That to me was showed the difference between the people, in that area, compared to some other parts of California. We were fond of the people in Rio Del (where we lived) and the area was overall very friendly to us. That was almost the deciding factor in our retiring there.
i was stationed there 89-91 and during one of them real cold spells hit some black ice at one of those hairpin turns and my car slowly slid off the road and hit one of those farmers cattle fence. also often saw deer and turtles inthe road
1971-1974 at least three people stationed there were killed in speed/alcohol related accidents on that road. Two seabees and a WO if memories serve.
Even the XO wrecked his car while I was there, 72 - 75.
Centerville Beach Road. My first trip down that road was on a dark stormy night, January 9, 1975 having just arrived from Guam. Scary and dangerous just do not describe my thoughts about that road. Not long after arriving at CVB I bought my first new car, a VW Scirroco and then I discovered how fun that road was. Of course the critter factor was huge as there were more then a few opportunities to run into things ranging from cows, horses, sheep, deer, skunks (lots of those), porcupines, fox's, frogs, turtles, dogs, cats, an endless list of hazards offering themselves up at inopportune moments. Some folks may have thought I was a bit crazy but once you understood the road, the conditions and the possible hazards it really was an enjoyable drive. One of the things I really miss about that whole area are the roads and the enjoyment I had driving them without to much traffic (as opposed to San Diego where I have lived since leaving the Navy in 1976). Yes, there were lots of accidents and incidents on that road but it was not all bad either, it just demanded 110% of your attention and then some extra just in case!
I remember either 83 or 84 on the road and saw a young drunk OTA infront of me crash and was really hurt bad. I used my truck seat cover to slow the bleeding until help arrived. I will never forget that night. im not sure but they said he had brain injuries and would never be right again. I dont remember his name but i prayed for him alot..
I remember a meeting (probably a safety stand down) after a fatal accident where we were discussing the hazards of that ****ed road and I asked if the command could petition to make improvements to make it safer. Blind turns, areas with no fog line, no center line, or markings of any kind - made it a dangerous road even in perfect conditions let alone at night, in the rain, or after a mid. A certain OTA1 working in the CMAA office was pushing the point that improving visibility would only encourage speeding. Can you imagine that? I thought we were supposed to be looking out for our shipmates. That kind of thinking really sealed the deal for my decision to get out after 10 years. Dangers aside, I loved driving on that road (albeit slowly) and remember one night in particular going in for a mid and it was pouring - and the road was literally crawling with frogs. It was surreal.