Mustard gas dumped at sea

Discussion in 'The War at Sea' started by Rav4, Jun 8, 2011.

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  1. Rav4

    Rav4 Senior Member

    Just after the war we lived in Barry Dock, South Wales and we used to see many merchant ships loaded with mustard gas being towed to be sunk. I believe they were towed to somewhere off the Irish coast. At the time, it was predicted that the gas would eventually leak from the ships.
    Is there any record of this gas leaking?
     
  2. PA. Dutchman

    PA. Dutchman Senior Member

    This will take you to the story, it was dumped in several locations around the world. Some was dumped off Hawaii. It went on for years until 1972 I believe.

    WAR AND THE ENVIRONMENT

    At the end of the Second World War Britain had over 2 million tons of munitions - artillery shells, phosphorus flares, mortars, incendiaries and cluster bombs and so on, to get rid of. Unsurprisingly, it was decided that the only economic way to dispose of this was to dump it in the sea. Beaufort Dyke, a 30-mile long trench between Scotland and Ireland became a major military dumping ground for 30 years thereafter. 14,000 tonnes of phosgene-filled rockets were just a small part of the wide variety of munitions dumped. Phosgene, a colourless poison gas which caused severe lung damage, was used by both the Germans and the Allies. It was designed to incapacitate rather than to kill.
     

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  3. spider

    spider Very Senior Member

    At least they didn't dump it on land, they are still cleaning the mess up from WW2 dumping.
     
  4. ww2ni

    ww2ni Senior Member

    I have heard of fishermen saying that they have seen the sea bubbling. There have also been a number of incidents where phosphorus flares have been washed up on our beaches following bad weather.
     
  5. von Poop

    von Poop Adaministrator Admin

  6. -tmm-

    -tmm- Senior Member

    A good friend of mind did his national service at RAF Ridgewell in Essex, and for years they would go around the local airbases collecting bombs and ammunition, maintaining them, keeping them as safe as possible prior to dumping them in the sea off Scotland.

    I don't specifically recall him talking about chemical weapons, but i do remember him telling me about some of the gas training excercises he had to do, so I'm sure he probably had to deal with a few nasties too.

    As far as I know everything they had went to the same place with the exception of small arms (.50 cal, grenades etc) which they detonated on the base....but not after the local farmer lodged a compaint that his cows weren't milking anymore!
     
  7. Gerard

    Gerard Seelow/Prora

    The Beaufort Dyke, Obviously not a good place to visit!!
     
  8. James S

    James S Very Senior Member

    From time to time quite a bit gets washed ashore on the County Antrim coastline.
     
  9. Tab

    Tab Senior Member

    There is a Liberty ship that sank in the Thames Estuary laden with high explosives and it is still there as they dare not touch in case they set it off. They are hoping that it will rot away into the sea
     
  10. PA. Dutchman

    PA. Dutchman Senior Member

    A number Nazi subs were carrying uranium that were sunk and lost, several more had mercury. There is great concern that these container have been leaking and will continue unless something is done.

    A Nazi sub surrendered to the Americans, it had many cases of Uranium that had to be unloaded. I will search for this story and post it here.

    Along with all the deadly gases we have mercury and uranium leaking out there in the oceans as well.

    http://www.sharkhunters.com/U-864.htm


    SHARKHUNTERS International</SPAN>

    The Story of U-864 and the Norwegian
    Government's Plans to Raise and Scrap her


    What follows are comments by Sharkhunters Members as well as others who have a comment to make. If you wish to make your thoughts known, you may email to annkristin.henriksen@fkd.dep.no and you may also copy to the Norwegian Ambassador using this email osloirc@state.govPlease keep your comments respectful!

    The typestyles and font sizes may vary because we copied directly from the incoming emails without retyping. Here they are, and there will be more each day as others are received.
    _________________________________________________
    Here is the situation in a nutshel......U-864 was sunk in February 1945 by the Royal Navy Submarine HMS VENTURER off the Norwegian coast and the wreck has recently been found. According to the manifest of U-864, she was carrying 65 tons of mercury bound for Japan and the Norwegian Government wants to raise the boat to deter any possibility of mercury contamination of the water and seabed. But there are three major factors to be taken into consideration:

    1. The remains of the 73 man crew are still aboard - the men are on "Eternal Patrol" and according to some, their
    slumber must not be disturbed;

    2. Is it really mercury on board? We have found the several of these big boats (This was Type IX-D2) carried
    uranium consigned to the Japanese army for their atomic bomb but it was carried on the manifest as
    'quicksilber' which means mercury. There 560 kilos of uranium aboard U-234 but carried on the manifest
    as 'quicksilber' so maybe this is uranium aboard U-864 and not mercury;

    3. This boat was sunk by torpedo attack of another submarine which blew the boat apart. Isnt it possible that the mercury (or possible uranium) has already been scatted to the currents for some 64 years already?
     
  11. PA. Dutchman

    PA. Dutchman Senior Member

    Story that confirms Germany was trying to supply Uranium to Japan and some were sunk with uranium and mercury on board the subs.

    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/German_submarine_U-234

    German submarine U-234 was a Type XBU-boat of the German Kriegsmarine during World War II. Her first and only mission into enemy territory consisted of the attempted delivery of uranium and other German advanced weapons technology to the Empire of Japan. After learning of Germany's unconditional surrender, the submarine surrendered to the United States on 14 May 1945.
     

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  12. Bradlad

    Bradlad Senior Member

    As has been said, dumping took place all over the world, however as far as I know the biggest is just off the coast of Belgium, unfortunately I don't have any details to hand but I am aware it is a very large bone of contention with the Green lobby in europe..
     
  13. Smudger Jnr

    Smudger Jnr Our Man in Berlin

    I seem to remember reading that the Japanese Government was still paying the Chinese for clearing up chemical ordnance, disposed of by burial and contaminating the land. Now causing health problems in the effected places.

    Lots of nasties disposed of after the war and they really are a ticking time bomb for future generations.

    Not to mention all the nuclear material buried deep under the earth.

    Food for thought.

    Regards
    Tom
     
  14. spider

    spider Very Senior Member

  15. Rav4

    Rav4 Senior Member

    Thank you everyone for responding. Judging from what we saw leaving Barry Dock and some of the links here there is an enormous amount of nasties under our oceans.
     
  16. PA. Dutchman

    PA. Dutchman Senior Member

    If you think those are nasty try an old farm OUTHOUSE in Pennsylvania on a hot humid day. The flies don't even go near one.
     

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