UW Camera lost on Aruba salvage job drifts to Key West, triggers time warp

[ricki]

http://travel.webshots.com/album/577735131ZvBWTi


The underwater camera that went to sea...

... and swam from Aruba just north of South America westward, perhaps arching north along Central American, curving east over the top of Cuba and gliding into the shallows of Key West?!



The camera's owner togged up for anchor recovery among other shots contained on the mystery cameras memory card.
http://travel.webshots.com/album/577735131ZvBWTi


Paul Shultz, a USCG investigator recovered the camera aka rotting tomato-looking thing from the shallows of a Key West marina on May 16, 2010. Downloaded the images and launched an investigation into where it came from.



Paul Shultz
http://www.cruisecritic.com/news/news.cfm?ID=3906



I'm guessing the camera may have headed into harbor near here, in the vicinity of the USCG base on Key West. This is a bit north of Mallory Sqaure and Duval Street.

He posted the photos on the Internet, on Scubaboard trying to track the owner down. You can see the initial post and numerous posts with ideas about where the camera may have came from at the link below.

http://www.scubaboard.com/forums/bas...-com-help.html

Eventually by checking the photo date and tail number of the jet in this photo, he tracked the location to Aruba.



http://travel.webshots.com/album/577735131ZvBWTi


A photo from the collection and a lucky response on an Aruban forum led him to the owner.




The camera was lost last year by Royal Netherlands Navy Sergent, Sgt. Dick De Bruin. On November 11 2009 he was diving with his team off Eagle Beach, Aruba on a special operation reportedly involving the USS Powell (?), a warship torpedoed in World War II. Having trouble confirming this, lots of vessels were torpedoed around NA during the war. The intention was to cut the anchor loose for a shoreside memorial. He had worked for two hours to cut the anchor chain in half to free the anchor. In the process he lost his underwater camera. The camera shot to the surface. Because he couldn't ascend without decompression, he had to let go of the camera. His friend had joked that the camera would float to Costa Rica or Panama. Little did they know. Stranger still, a turtle had somehow become temporarily entangled with the camera strap, and shot a self-video for a while. The video was recovered with the camera. Turtles know little about proper framing and controlling camera motion it seems. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E43sg-Ytt58



Sergeant De Bruin (in Navy whites) with his mates by the USS Powell anchor forming the Memorial.
http://www.telegraaf.nl/binnenland/6..._.html?cid=rss


Excellent information and images about WWII, Aruba and the Netherlands Antilles can be found at this great website:
http://www.lago-colony.com/WORLD_WAR_II/DIRECTOR.htm



There was German U-Boat activity around Aruba during the war, evidenced by this beached torpedo being examined by Dutch and USA military personnel. Tragically it detonated during efforts to defuse it after it beached taking the lives of four men. I understand the memorial Sergeant De Bruin was recovering the anchor for was created in honor of those lost men.
http://www.lago-colony.com/WORLD_WAR...e_magazine.htm



Rendering of U-Boat 156 attack on shipping and refinery at Aruba
http://www.lago-colony.com



Oil production areas tremendous strategic value during the war years.
http://www.lago-colony.com/WORLD_WAR...agazine.htmhad


A write up about the attack by a correspondent for Time Magazine who was on the island at the time.
http://www.time.com/time/magazine/ar...884455,00.html



Eagle Beach today, things have changed a bit since the refinery was here.
http://www.arubaphotos.org/


More about the fairly active war years around the ABC islands, NAZI's, Spanish spies, Japanese, Venezuelan revolutionaries, Highland Scots, oil, something for everyone. As one of the largest refineries in the world, it was a point of focus for many interests in the conflict. Subs from the German wolfpack cruised these waters looking for oil tanker targets.
http://www.lago-colony.com/BURSON_LU...AS%20LUCKY.pdf


Another salvage job by the Sargeant for the memorial, stories, photos and videos.
http://www.lago-colony.com/PROPELLOR..._PROPELLOR.htm


The artifacts are being used to create an on-land memorial for the men who died in World War II in this area. Dutch, USA and British forces protected Aruba, a major oil producer, from German forces during the war. Approximately 45 ships were sunk by German submarines in the area during the War.
http://www.lago-colony.com/SHIP_SINK...rman_uboat.htm



If the camera took the western route to KW from Aruba via the Caribbean Current, it may have covered about 1700 miles!


More about this remarkable story, making news in the Caribbean, Florida and Holland at:
http://keysnews.com/node/24046



Another day and time. Soliders march along the water in Oranjestad.
http://www.lago-colony.com/WORLD_WAR..._troops_in.htm



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