Monday, March 6, 2017

Mystery At The South Pole...!

Murder can occur anyplace, as we all know. This report may just be the very first murder at the South Pole, however.

There may be some other explanation for this young man's death, but as yet it remains a mystery. I'm sure it's disturbing for the other folks working there.

South Pole


Photo credit: Wikimedia

Astrophysicist Rodney Marks was stationed at the US Amundsen-Scott South Pole Station in May 2000 when he inexplicably began to feel ill. In fact, he felt so awful that he made three visits to medical personnel in the period of 36 hours. There was no explanation found for his ailment, which included him vomiting blood, and on May 12, Rodney Marks died.

It took six months for his body to be flown to New Zealand, where it was found that the 32-year-old had died from acute methanol poisoning. Years later, investigators are still baffled by just how Marks could have become poisoned. It was fleetingly suspected that he may have committed suicide, but that theory didn’t hold water considering he was in a very happy relationship and loved his work. Some suggested he ingested the methanol to get high, while a darker theory suggests Marks had been murdered by one of the other 49 staff members stationed there at the time. To date, the cause of the fatal poisoning remains a mystery. So does the possibility of the first murder at the South Pole.

Whatever the cause of his death, I'm sure the rest of the crew will be happy to find out the answer to this mystery. I know I would.

Coffee out on the patio this morning again. It's a little damp from all the rain yesterday, but we'll make do.

7 comments:

linda m said...

I hope they do find an answer as it will help the family with closure. Coffee on the patio sounds wonderful. I'll bring some Dunkin's to share. Damp here with more rain later on today.

Momlady said...

Wow! Makes one wonder, doesn't it? Love Dunkin's!

JO said...

Good one in today's science and forensics you would thing they would have figured that out by know.

Winds were so bad yesterday it blew the glass glove off my porch light and it is a little chilly this morning. See you on the patio

HermitJim said...

Hey Linda...
Coffee outside is always a good thing, I believe. Especially after a brutal Winter.
Thanks for the donuts and for stopping by today!


Hey Momlady...
I hate it when any crime goes unsolved. Like you say, it does make you wonder!
Thanks for coming over today!


Hey Jo...
Sounds like the winds are giving you all a fit. Take care!
Thanks, sweetie, for dropping by today!

Rob said...

Another mystery I had to look up, you find good ones Mr Hermit! Methanol poisoning is antifreeze poisoning.

Close quarters for an extended period of time, I wonder if he got on anybody's nerves? You'd have to look into everyone who was there with him & see if irritating people had a habit of ending up dead around any of them.

A good mystery.

Dizzy-Dick said...

Living in an isolated place that stays dark for months could be depressing to sun loving people. So, maybe he just wanted to get a little drunk and that was all he had available to get the job done. We will never know for sure.

HermitJim said...

Hey Rob...
Chances are he rubbed someone the wrong way once too often. I'm thinking that they must have undergone some background checks or something before being assigned to such an outpost.
Thanks for coming over today!


Hey Dizzy...
Guess he should have been a little more careful of the ingredients of what he was drinking. No accounting for taste, I reckon.
Thanks for the visit today, my friend.