| P-MAN XIV Update #13 - ROV software issues and soil sampling with the President 30 March 2012 It was a disappointing day today for the ROV team. All they wanted to do was boost the power to the thrusters. So they changed the programming to a 36 volt system. But another part of the setup was limiting the volts to 29. So this wasn't going to work. They decided to change back to the 24 volt system and then lost the programming. Then they had to download the programming because they couldn't find where it was stored on the computer. Even Bob Richards, who knew it was stored in four separate undisclosed secure locations, couldn't locate it. They were downloading the software near the dock, when the wifi kicked off. So they went back to the hotel to finish the download. Back at the dock, they were still tinkering away when we last saw them. We scrubbed the boat for the day and the BentProp team went back to the hotel to plot out our next week. We've set up a couple of searches via boat, and a couple via car. One will require a 2.5 hour hike in to the target area. And Pat finally said, "let's get that side-scan sonar gear out of storage and use it. Dan and Flip, you set it up." So the next time the ROV team goes out, Dan and Flip will conveniently be left on shore. That means the ROV team is bound to find something very interesting. Derek Abbey is arriving tonight, 30 March, to complete our mission team. He will be here until the end of the trip. We had dinner with our old friends Margie and Dave, who used to own Bandidos, the best Mexican restaurant in Palau.
Pat excused himself early from the table to go pick Derek up at the airport. For some reason I thought Derek was coming in at 11:25pm, not 7:50pm. We scheduled a nice slow dinner at with Dave and Margie at Elilai (Wonderful Pacific-Rim cuisine. The Chef is Swedish, he was found in Tokyo and now works in Palau. You can't make this stuff up) and then figured out about Derek. Pat came back empty handed. Seems Derek's plane from Honolulu did not get to Guam in time for his flight to Palau. He's now coming tomorrow. Through Yap. At 12:35am on the 1st. I guess I was closer to the time. Tomorrow we'll be showing the President of Palau the area where we think the Japanese executed a number of U.S. servicemen and a Jesuit priest and a family of followers. One of our tasks is to take some soil samples of the area for analysis to see if human remains may be present. We will be doing the same at two other possible sites on Babelthuap. On April 1st, Dan and Flip will be inside setting up the SSS gear while Derek, Pat and Joe find cool stuff with the ROV team. April 2 through 4 will also be dedicated to ROV work. But now that we have 5 BentProppers on site, we can split up and accomplish more. I'm sure we will. April 4 is the last ROV day. If you come all the way to Palau, you can't miss the Peleliu Battlefield and the ancient Palauan tour. The 5th and 6th will be cultural days for the ROV team. 31 March We can finally tell you who the pilot of the Corsair is. Lt. Colonel Carroll E. McCullah, USMC, Retired. At the time of the ditching, he was a Captain with credit for shooting down two Betty Bombers at Guadalcanal - a bonafide war hero with a Distinguished Flying Cross (DFC) with Gold Star and Air Medal with two Gold Stars. I hope I have that right. After WWII, he went on to serve a long distinguished career in the Marines, also serving in The Korean War. And he is still with us today at 91 years of age. His family is really excited about all of this, since they've heard the Colonel's stories since they were wee toddlers. They got excited after they figured out Derek wasn't just a nut case calling them from out of the blue. In an email, one of the Colonel's grandsons told us that diving his granddad's airplane is now on his bucket list.
Today we took the President of Palau into the jungle to look at the spot where we suspect several U.S. servicemen and a community of Jesuit Priests were executed. Last year the President went on a tour of this area with an entourage of at least 40 people. Today, it was just him and a few trusted aides. Our purpose was to take some soil samples for analysis back in the U.S,. and he wanted to help. We met at 0900 and drove up to the site. There is a bit more going on these days up in the area we call Police Hill and the old rutted road is now very passable for a four-wheel-drive vehicle. Even ours. We only had to hike down the hill, into the jungle and about 30 yards through the forest.
The President put in some location flags, took the first sample, attached the identification label and thanked us for our efforts. Just as a reminder, the Palauans feel they owe their existence to the U.S. Servicemen who sacrificed so much for their freedom in World War Two. We walked the President back to his car, said our goodbyes and went back to the jungle to complete our sampling. We took 18 total samples from the area. Below are some photos (all but one taken by Erin Richards) that illustrate the process:
After we finished, we took a leisurely drive to the east side of Babelthuap in Ngchesar State to look at the ocean. The new cross-island road is a joy to drive on. However, there is one section about a mile long left as it was to remind everyone how nice finished roads really are. We made a quick stop at Bem Ermii for a burger to go, and we sat below the Koror-Babelthuap bridge enjoying the ocean breezes. Back at the house, we found a few of the ROV team members. They had a ball doing all the tourist trips that included The Milky Way, Jellyfish Lake, and feeding fish and sharks. Did I say sharks? They had a ball. We're all fighting over who will pick up Derek tonight - at 12:30 a.m., which really means 0100 after he clears customs and immigration. This is going to be a long night. Buck came in to tell us they fixed the power problems and the thrusters are so strong the ROV moves across the floor in the hotel room. What I hope this means is that we find something tomorrow that is really interesting. - Flip Colmer |
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