Lil' Irish Temper
Guest
Dead Body in Michigan, anyone know anything about him, or heard of him?
Body in Lake Superior Wreck?
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Slick6
Contributor
Whitey. Heh. 
Slick6:Whitey. Heh.
Isn't Whitey in the engine room of the Kamloops??
I read somewhere that his family wanted him left there, and that divers pay their respects when visiting the wreck.
spooky, that's all I'll say...spooky
Laser
Guest
Tavi:
That's what I thought as well.
I think I've head that too, and that if you are not careful he can get caught up in your wake on your way through, and kind of follow you.
very spooky, but I've never been there.
very spooky, but I've never been there.
diver_paula
Contributor
Tavi:
I know the dead crewman is on one of the wrecks near Isle Royale in Lake Superior. Given that, it's a deep wreck in cold water that isn't visited as often as the wrecks in say The Mackinaw Straits. I think he's on a different wreck than the Kamloops but am not sure. I also know he is left alone. If he was easily removed / recovered from the ship that would have been done many years ago. & yes, the family knows he is there. Friends of mine that have dived the wreck say he still has his wedding ring on.
DiverEMT
Guest
It is true that bodies do not decompose in water that cold, but they do take on a white waxy like appearance. I've seen photographs and videos from it.
As for diving to see a dead guy- that's a little creepy to me.
As for diving to see a dead guy- that's a little creepy to me.
Yes, The cold fresh water keeps bodies in what they call a soapified state. I haven't seen it, but I hear that it looks like ivory soap.
Bodys generally will not float in water colder than about 60 degrees as decomposition does not occur fast enough for the body to develop enough gas to float. So it's not just Superior that won't give up it's dead but any body of fresh water deep enough to stay cold year round.
The other factor at work is the O2 content of the water. Deep cold bodies of water with minimal seasonal turn over tend to have relatively low O2 levels which in turn leads to low levels of aerobic bacteria, low levels of decomposition, and relatively few fish.
However, the silt on the bottom of a body of water can be another story altogether. It is often loaded with anerobic bacteria that live for the purpose of decomposing what ever filters down through the water column.
This can then have disturbing results for a body on the bottom of a lake lying in several inches of silt, as opposed to being in a relatively silt free engine room. For example a body was recovered locally in approx 100 ft of water (with temps in the mid 40's summer, low 30's winter) and 6 inches of silt. Everything above the silt line was fairly well preserved and had the expected waxy composition while everything under the silt line was in a very advanced state of decomposition.
The other factor at work is the O2 content of the water. Deep cold bodies of water with minimal seasonal turn over tend to have relatively low O2 levels which in turn leads to low levels of aerobic bacteria, low levels of decomposition, and relatively few fish.
However, the silt on the bottom of a body of water can be another story altogether. It is often loaded with anerobic bacteria that live for the purpose of decomposing what ever filters down through the water column.
This can then have disturbing results for a body on the bottom of a lake lying in several inches of silt, as opposed to being in a relatively silt free engine room. For example a body was recovered locally in approx 100 ft of water (with temps in the mid 40's summer, low 30's winter) and 6 inches of silt. Everything above the silt line was fairly well preserved and had the expected waxy composition while everything under the silt line was in a very advanced state of decomposition.
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