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When Hurricane Katrina came ashore early Aug. 29, it brought almost total devastation to the Gulf Shores area from west of New Orleans to the Florida panhandle. The Category 5 hurricane's winds and record storm surge not only laid waste to cities and towns, killing hundreds of people, it also caused millions of dollars worth of damage to shipping and shipyards in the region.

 

Our research vessel, the RV Beacon, was moored in the shipyards south of Mobile, Ala., when the storm hit, but thanks to some quick thinking and timely action both before and after the storm by RS Operations employees Denny Davis and Ron Stalnaker, she was spared.

 

Sensing the storm would be severe, Davis and Stalnaker securely lashed the Beacon to her dock, and made sure all openings were sealed before they sought refuge in their Mobile hotel. Upon venturing out once the storm had subsided, they found almost total destruction in the shipyards. Many of the ships had been tossed several hundred yards inland, where they were stacked like cordwood, according to Davis.

 

One of the Beacon's underwater stabilizers had caught on the dock and she was listing severely. Davis and Stalnaker also quickly surmised that the receding floodwaters would cause the ship to continue to list and possibly sink. They were able to flag down a passing heavy-duty wrecker, which stopped and hooked onto the Beacon, righting her in the water. Davis and Stalnaker literally saved the ship and the ongoing expedition to recover the sunken galleons of the South Seas Armada off Ecuador.

 

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Legendary treasure hunter Bob Marx said it's a miracle she survived.

 

"She's a lucky ship and it bodes well for the future success of the expedition," Marx said.

 

It took the men four long days before they were able to regain communications and apprise RSOPS personnel on the ground in Ecuador of the situation. While survey work and other portions of Phase II of our South Seas Expeditions are continuing, the overall time schedule has been pushed back slightly due to the hurricane's destruction.

 

Originally due to arrive in Ecuador in mid-September, we now estimate it will be mid- to late October before the Beacon will arrive to begin salvage operations. Much of the delay is due to the extreme damage in the area, and the shortage of available facilities to finish preparations on the Beacon before she can set sail.

 

"I'm just thankful Denny and Ron are alright, and that they took all the right actions before the storm hit," Heimdal said. " The Beacon survived solely due to their quick thinking and actions. We owe them both a huge debt of gratitude."