Monday, March 2, 2015

Another Maritime Monday Mystery...!

There are so many stories of strange and baffling mysteries at sea, we could do a different one every day and not run out.

The stories that are the most fascinating to me are the ones where nothing is ever found. No crew, no bodies, and no wreckage. These stay on the unexplained list for years to come.

The SS Poet

First, she was called the General Omar Bundy and hauled troops in World War II. Later, she hauled steel as the Port. In 1979, she was acquired by the Eugenia Corporation of Hawaii, who gave her the last name she would ever hold: the Poet.



There was nothing particularly mysterious about the Poet’s last job. In 1979, her hold was filled with 13,500 tons of corn, which she was scheduled to haul from Philadelphia to Port Said, Egypt—a rather routine and dull job, all things considered.

There was only one problem—the Poet never reached Port Said. In fact, her last communication came only six hours after leaving Philadelphia, when one of her officers spoke to his wife. After that, she failed to report for her 48-hour check-in, she failed to give any kind of distress signal—she failed to communicate ever again. To make matters worse, the Eugenia Corporation didn’t report her missing until six days after she last made contact. Even then, the Coast Guard didn’t bother searching for another five days. No trace of the Poet was ever found.

Ya know, it seems to me that I read somewhere that it was bad luck to change the name of a ship or boat. If that's true, this poor vessel really had no chance. Anyone knowing if this is true or not, please let me know!

Coffee out on the patio this morning. Should be a sunny day!

7 comments:

Chickenmom said...

Yep! heard that about renaming boats. And restaurants, too. Send some of that sunshine up here!

linda m said...

I heard that same thing. Maybe that's why she disappeared - too much bad juju. I would love to sit outside, only 14 degrees here. I'll stop at Dunkin on my way and bring some donuts.

Mamahen said...

That IS a good mystery! A little warmer here but 2I. is still to cold for sitting outside.... i'll meet everyone on the patio and save me a donut please :))

Sixbears said...

You can rename them, if you do it with proper ceremony. At least that's what some folks believe. Others say never change.

It's a big ocean out there full of mystery.

Nice day in FL

JO said...

Strange as it's disappearing is why no one did anything for such a long time.

Going to be rainy and ugly here so your patio sounds like a great place.

HermitJim said...

Hey Phyllis...
I didn't know about the restaurants. I appreciate the information!

Thanks for stopping by!



Hey Linda...
You are thinking like I am. Too much bad juju!

I appreciate the visit this morning!



Hey Mamahen...
Glad you liked it. More than enough room on the patio for everyone!

Thanks for coming over today!



Hey Sixbears...
Seems like the ceremony makes the difference. Interesting...

Thanks for dropping by today!



Hey Jo...
The whole thing sounds strange! Maybe some funny business going on!

Thanks, sweetie, for coming over this morning!

Dizzy-Dick said...

It is a big ocean and the crew is all alone in a large bobbing tin can, no wonder they go crazy at times. Almost anything could have happened. Not knowing something for sure really makes it a mystery and the sea is full of them.