BAFFLING SHIP DISAPPEARANCES IN THE DEEP DARK WATERS

BAFFLING SHIP DISAPPEARANCES IN THE DEEP DARK WATERS Sailing has been known for shrinking the world and connecting the distances, but there are instances when the last sail was as mysterious as the ocean bed.Read on to know how the waters have engulfed some ships and crew in totality, without leaving any traces of their presence.Here are a few noteworthy ship disappearances in the history of mankind. 1. The USS Wasp Now there have been several ships that were named the Wasp Series per say, but one Wasp Ship that has captivated the minds was the one that vanished in 1814. In 1813, Britain was at war and this ship was built for this purpose. Proudly designated the “sloop-of-war”, this fast moving vessel was equipped with a square sail, 22 guns, and a crew of around 170 people on board. She was a beautiful piece of architecture and engineering. It even fought 13 travels and according to the war policy, any ship that the Wasp would gain triumph over, was to be burned down. In 1814, she captured the Atlanta, and the crew decided that the Atlanta was too precious and valuable to be burnt down. So they were directed to lovingly bring it back to the harbour. This was an unusual decision because this was a prize win for the US. Atlanta was previously the American Ship “Siro” that had been captured by the enemy front and renamed Atlanta. After the Captain directed the Atlanta, the rest of the crew went towards the warm waters of the Caribbean, and just disappeared. Without a trace, without a mark, it was never to be seen again. The easiest that we can contemplate is this lovely beauty of a ship getting shambled to wrecks in a storm, but is it really possible that there is no trace of the ship remains or the crew? The reason of this ship’s disappearance is not known till today! This is one of the bizarre disappearances that has fetched no explanations till date! 2. The Marine Sulphur Queen A 160 meter tanker, which was originally used to carry oil during the World War II, was later refurbished to carry molten sulphur. This means that her storage tanks would have to be kept at enormously high temperature. Though minor leakages were common for this ship, the crew would mainly ignore them most of the times. The ship was nothing close to a super tanker, but it still continued hauling molten sulphur till 1963. One fine sunny day at sea, the Marine Sulphur Queen was sailing in the joyous blue waters, and sent a message of everything being normal over a well interpreted radio signal. After this, nobody ever heard from the ship again. What happened on that fateful day is not known to anyone! While some historians say that she could have exploded; others point out the Bermuda Triangle to be the cause. There were no remains of the crew that could uncover the mystery. Some debris have been found, but they still do not disclose much about the disappearance. The Marine Sulphur Queen was an engineering miracle that survived for long. This ship’s disappearance is still considered to be a conspiracy, but no proof has been located so far. 3. The Porpoise Earlier known as the Hermaphrodite Brig, the Porpoise gained popularity with the sheer brilliance with which her two masts used two different sails. Later, she was refitted with square sails on both the masts. Though this was initially used as a pirate hunter, she was later assigned to an exploration mission in 1838. This was the ship that discovered the Antarctica, and circumnavigated the planet, but gained notoriety after it failed to aid a damaged French Ship. Though this raged a controversy, but it did not stop the Porpoise from going on another exploratory mission in 1853. It went around, discovered a lot in the south Pacific, resupplied in China, and departed in September 1854. And then she just vanished! There was no contact ever made after that. Though some people contemplate that the ship may’ve been destroyed in bad weather, but there are no proofs for it either. 4. The Witchcraft Sailing about a mile into the sea, a Miami hotel owner Burack, decided to catch a glimpse of the city lights from the cruiser. He went aboard the Witchcraft with Father Patrick Hogan and the boat was in a good working condition when the two men left. Later in the evening around 9 pm, Burack radioed for a request to be towed back to the marina. He reported that the boat had struck an unknown object, and hence was immobile. Since he had built the Witch Craft himself, he knew he could use the special hull that would keep the ship from sinking. It took just 20 minutes for the Coast guard to reach the location that was described by Burack. By that time the Witch Craft had gone! No one knows what happened that night. The coast guard searched for an area of 3100 kms around the location that was mentioned but they found nothing; neither the ship not the two people who were on board. This is one question which baffles many till today. 5. The Baychimo So this beautiful ship could still be out there. Some people call this a ghost ship, but it was actually a cargo ship powered by steam. Mainly used for transportation of fur from the north of Canada, the Baychimo’s first nine journeys were not that fruitful. Winter struck early in the year 1931, and Baychimo was not prepared for it at all. It was totally trapped in the ice. Though the captain and some of the crew were pulled by planes, some of the crew members decided to stick it out. They made a camp in the sight of the ship. A blizzard blew up obscuring the ship, and when the storm subsided, the ship had vanished. Over the next few decades, the ship was still sighted by many, all along the Arctic. The last sighting was in 1969, a total of 37 years after she was abandoned. Though many projects have been launched to find the ship, it still remains a bizarre disappearance. If such a huge engineering marvel like a ship can just disappear, imagine how mystical this planet is. The next time you are about to sail, keep your eyes open, and the detective lens around. You may just find a ship that has vanished!

5. The Baychimo

Murtaza Rangwala

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