Bell v. Seatrain Lines, Inc.

Maritime personal injury case. Plaintiff Garland Bell brought an action based on theories of negligence under the Jones Act ( 46 U.S.C. § 688 ; 45 U.S.C. § 51 ) and unseaworthiness under general maritime law, against defendant Seatrain Lines, Incorporated. The trial *19 court directed a verdict in favor of defendant on the Jones Act count; 1 the jury brought in a verdict in favor of defendant on the unseaworthiness theory. Plaintiff appeals from the judgment entered on the verdict.

Facts

Plaintiff, in January 1968, was an assistant engineer on the S.S. Sea-train Savannah, a cargo ship headed for the Orient. On January 29, 1968, the ship anchored about four miles off Qui Nhon, Vietnam, awaiting a berth at the dock so that it could unload its cargo. Several other ships were anchored offshore.

An agreement between defendant and plaintiff’s union provided that off-duty personnel were entitled to shore leave. The agreement also provided that when the vessel arrived “at a safe harbor,” defendant “shall furnish” daily roundtrip launch service “when weather permits and when regular service is available.”

The Tet offensive was going on at the time and Qui Nhon was generally…