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08/10/2004: "Scuba Club News for August"
From Capt. Dan Berg's e-news letter WreckValle@aol.com :
PLEASE NOTE: John Bricker sent me this letter! Unfortunately, this is not the first time artifacts have been stolen from a local dive store. A few wks back my large brass rudder gudgeon from the Arnoff Wreck was stolen from Tiedimans Diving Center.
I would like to ask the diving community to take note of anyone who has recently added either the gudgeon or below listed Doria artifacts to their collection. I'm a firm believer in Vigilantly justice. We now just need to track down the low life.
Opionions vary when it comes to the recovery of artifacts, and while we as divers might not always agree, most would find the following events disturbing. One of the shops I frequent Long Island Scuba in Lindenhurst NY, has an extensive Doria display exhibited by Alantic Wreck Diver Pat Rooney. The display contained a near complete sampling of Doria China (of all classes), stemware, silverware and pewter. The display has been there for over a year. The other night Pat noticed one of the curios was out of place and few artifacts were removed by persons unknown. Sadly one of the items was a one of a kind to him and is not easly replaced. The owners of the store are appalled at this developement and are offering a reward for its return, also the items can be mailed back no questions asked. Anyone one with information can PM me or call Long Island Scuba at (631)225-8450.
While this may seem trivial to some, I offer that Pat has dived the Doria over 100 times, and while many horde their artifacts Pat has choosen to make them avialable for other divers to see, and I believe that this is a piss poor way for that person to thank him.
Cheers
John Bricker
From Tom G. of Divers Anonymous
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Dear Friends of the mantas,
The new worldwide non-profit organization, The Manta Network, is holding their First Annual International Manta Ray Photo and Video Contest. Entries will be accepted until September 15, 2004. The contest culminates at the DEMA Show (Diving Equipment Manufacturers' Association) October 13-16, 2004 in Houston, Texas with an exhibition and awards ceremony.
Here is a great way for both amateurs and professionals to share photography and videography that captures those special moments spent underwater with the majestic manta rays. Winners will receive publicity, be prominently exhibited at this well attended trade show, will have their work displayed online and be awarded a variety of wonderful prizes. The top two contestants will win a trip to go diving with the Kona Mantas and stay at the beautiful Sheraton Keauhou Bay Resort &am! p; Spa. Diving provided by Bottom Time Hawaii.
Please inform your members about this exciting contest which is open to both amatures and professionals. If you have a website, we would appreciate an announcement and a link to our site.
====== The deadline for entries is September 15, 2004! ======
Entries can be submitted either online or via regular mail. Contestants can obtain entry forms and official rules from the Manta Network website at: http://www.Save-the-Mantas.org. Digital entries can also be submitted on-line. Each entry helps support The Manta Network and their ongoing
research and educational purposes. The entry fees are considered a tax-deductible contribution. The organization is inviting everyone interested in helping with their mission, not only underwater photographers, to contact them. They need volunteers of all types to help spread the word about Saving the Day for the Manta Ray. For more information contact Robert Aston at:
contest@Save-the-Mantas.org or call: 831-426-4400
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About The Manta Network
=============================================
This non-profit is the first international organization dedicated to the protection and conservation of Manta birostris worldwide. Their mission includes the creation of a global network that will consist of manta researchers, sport divers, photographers, dive and tour operators, corporate sponsors and individuals, who will all work together to further the efforts to protect these magnificent creatures.
The founder of The Manta Network, Robert Aston, M.S. Earth Sciences, has been dedicated to this cause for many years. He has been working closely with the leading manta researchers since
1996 to collect information about Manta birostris populations. Legal counsel for The Manta Network is provided b! y Covington & Burling, one of the top global environmental law firms.
=============================================
Please visit http://www.Save-the-Mantas.org and register to become a member--it's free.
Museum pushed for old station
Published in the Asbury Park Press 7/20/04 www.app.com
By JUSTIN VELLUCCI, STAFF WRITER
MANASQUAN -- A group last night said it wants to see a maritime history museum built in the borough's former Coast Guard station, one of six Duluth-style stations left standing in the state. Under the committee's plans, several groups would get office space in the renovated station, originally built in 1902, and the New Jersey Historical Divers Association would install rotating exhibits in a large "boat bay" on the first floor of the building. The group also proposed creating a commission, possibly funded in part by the borough, to oversee the renovated station. A string of residents, local historians and activists cited the station's historic relevance in a bid to gain Borough Council approval for the museum.
Council members have informally endorsed plans for office and meeting space at the three-story station and renovations are set to begin in the fall. But use of the boat bay at the building, located between First and Second avenues, remains unclear.
New Jersey Historical Divers Association President Dan Lieb said part of the station would be ideal for an educational museum dedicated to shipwrecks and seafaring. "People will be able to see and read about the daily lives of those who served here in Manasquan," Lieb said. In addition to displaying artifacts, the nonprofit association would make its archives available there, he said. They are currently stored at James J. Howard Marine Sciences Laboratory in Sandy Hook. Sea Girt Lighthouse Citizen's Committee President Bill Dunn endorsed the plan for a museum, saying community involvement at the Manasquan station could be similar to involvement at the Sea Girt Lighthouse. Dunn said an estimated 4,000 people visit the lighthouse every year. Several residents lauded the Manasquan committee's efforts and voiced support for preserving the station. "It is a treasure. It is a jewel," resident Mary Ware said. "It really is what Manasquan is all about." Mayor Rich Dunne said decisions about what goes into the station will be made after renovations begin. Manasquan has bonded for up to $250,000 to fund the renovations, which include interior improvements, asbestos removal, construction of new restrooms and a kitchenette, and installation of handicapped-accessible ramps.
Finally this story comes out.
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U-boat remains found off Canada
By Lee Carter
BBC, Toronto
A team of divers and documentary film makers have found the wreck of a German U-boat off eastern Canada. The submarine was sunk in 1942 during World War II, preventing it from completing its mission to lay mines in the harbour of the US city of Boston. U-boat 215 is the first confirmed Nazi submarine found in Canadian waters. During World War II plenty of German U-boats were deployed off the Atlantic coast of North America, sinking naval vessels and merchant ships. But U-215 had a special secret mission. It was ordered to the American port city of Boston to mine the harbour. But the German captain of the U-boat spotted an American ship loaded with tanks and bombers. Mike Fletcher, a Canadian diver who helped find the U-boat, says it was then that the German captain made a fatal mistake. "To him it must have be! en a tantalising target that he probably should have passed by," he said. "But he thought about those weapons and he thought about how many German lives he might save if he could sink that ship. But in doing so he exposed himself. The hunter became the hunted."
Watery grave
Ignoring orders, the sub torpedoed the American ship, USS Alexander McComb. But a British Royal Navy ship counter-attacked, sinking the Nazi submarine with depth charges. For 62 years it has been sitting in its watery grave off the coast of Nova Scotia. The team used sonar and conducted two dives to the sunken vessel while battling strong tides and currents. Mr Fletcher says his team could see live mines still inside the wreck and it is presumed the remains of the forty-nine crew members are also still inside.
The U-boat is likely to become the property of Germany and in the past it has been customary to leave sunken vessels alone.
Story from BBC NEWS:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/2/hi/americas/3894155.stm
Published: 2004/07/14 14:31:04 GMT
© BBC MMIV