Submersible Turtle Baffles New York Police

File Under -- "Silly Season Strange Story of the Month (So Far):" Bizarre submersible found floating off New York

New York authorities were questioning three men found in a bizarre submersible vessel floating just off Manhattan on Friday, according to local reports. The men were discovered early Friday near the cruise terminal in Brooklyn where the massive ocean liner The Queen Mary II is moored, ABC television reported on its website. When asked about the incident, a police spokeswoman declined to confirm the report or provide any further information, saying only that officers were at the scene. What the three men were doing in the vessel -- which appeared to be spherical with a circular hatch on top -- was not immediately clear.

Perhaps not to the New York Police or the New York media, but those familiar with the history of submarines immediately looked at the pictures: and thought: "The Turtle is back!"

Turtle, 1775

Initial reports about today's "submersible" were careful (as they always are) to stress that the incident was "not terror-related." Still, having a device like the Turtle floating about near the Brooklyn Bridge and the QM II should give someone pause. The original Turtle was, in fact, one of the original terrorist weapons.

The Turtle was the world's first submarine used in battle. It was invented in Connecticut in 1775 by David Bushnell and was created as a means of attaching explosive charges to ships in a harbor. Wikipedia

At least one replica of The Turtle has recently been constructed. Perhaps this is another history/science fair less gone terribly, terribly wrong.

UPDATE: CBS News catches up and confirms: "Submarine" Causes Stir In NY Harbor, 3 People Arrested After Odd-Looking Vessel Spotted Near Docked Queen Mary 2 - CBS News

The brown, egg-shaped wooden vessel, known as a "turtle submarine," is a replica of a submarine used during the American Revolution, said Coast Guard Petty Officer Angelia Rorison. It looks like a diving bell, with a hatch on top, and is about 8 feet long and 4 feet wide. It is propelled by a pedal-operated paddle.

The Coast Guard issued two citations to Philip Riley, 35, who was inside the vessel, Rorison said.

"Basically, the vessel was not safe to sail. It had no lights, no flares. It was not registered," Rorison said. "Instead of safety violations, this could have turned into a search and rescue."

Well, it wasn't exactly "sailing." Like the original, it was sort of bobbing around.

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Posted by Vanderleun at August 3, 2007 11:10 AM | TrackBack