Latest news with #DomRobinson
Metro
2 days ago
- General
- Metro
Shipwreck mystery solved 140 years later after extraordinary discovery
A 19th century ship that sunk off the coast of Plymouth has been found 140 years later. The SS Nantes sank in November 1888 killing 23 crew members and the ship's whereabouts have been unknown until now. It is all thanks for deep sea diver Dom Robinson that the forgotten ship has now been found – 246 feet deep, 30 miles southeast of Plymouth. He found a piece of crockery in the water and saw it bore the stamp 'Cunard Steamship Company' which helped identify the vessel. Dom told Metro: 'It was a Eureka moment when I found the plate and could make that connection. 'It feels like I've honoured those who lost their lives in the sinking because of solving that mystery. 'Out of all my deep sea dives this one was definitely up there as the best because it was so unsuspected.' Conditions were poor on the day that the steam ship was hit by the German sailing vessel Theodor Ruger. The vessel pierced into the side of the Nantes and tore a big hole on the side which eventually caused it to sink. The crews on the Nantes were unable to escape because the collision damaged the lifeboats. Out of everybody on board, only three people survived, including one man found at sea and two who jumped off. Dom shared his story on his YouTube account and said that deep water diving is his 'way of life'. 'To be able to solve mysteries and have this sense of adventure is exciting,' he said. 'By doing this it feels good because it brings these people's stories back to life. 'I won't stop deep water diving.' More Trending Dr Harry Bennett is an expert in maritime history at Plymouth University and gave his reaction to Metro. He said: 'Every wreck tells a story and this one is important because it tells a human story. 'It highlights the every day perils of maritime travel, particularly during a time when many ships ended up crashing. 'We have forgotten a lot of our history and finds like this highlight the dangers of maritime travel even today. Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at webnews@ For more stories like this, check our news page. MORE: Arsenal hero Jack Wilshere named favourite to take Wayne Rooney's old job
CNN
2 days ago
- General
- CNN
Maritime mystery solved after shipwreck discovered off UK coast
A 19th century ship that sank nearly 140 years ago has been found 'frozen in time' off Britain's coast. Twenty-three crew members died when the SS Nantes sank off the coast of Cornwall in November 1888, but the whereabouts of the wreck have remained a mystery – until now. The incredible discovery was made after deep sea diver Dom Robinson found a piece of crockery amid the watery remains. Back on land, Robinson, 53, saw the broken plate bore the stamp 'Cunard Steamship Company,' which helped identify the stricken vessel through information available online. It turned out he and a team of fellow divers had been exploring the SS Nantes, which had been a 14-year-old cargo ship at the time of its demise, according to Harry Bennett, a history professor and maritime expert from the University of Plymouth. 'Nantes is one of those vessels that's been known about but has been lost for a long period of time,' he told CNN Friday. Conditions were poor that fateful day when the steam ship was hit by German sailing vessel Theodor Ruger. 'It pierces the side of the Nantes and tears a big hole into its side,' said Bennett. 'For several hours, the crew tried to save their ship using all manner of materials to try and fill the hole, including mattresses. But eventually they lose that fight and the ship goes down very rapidly.' The two boats were 'briefly locked together' before sinking, Bennett said. The collision damaged Nantes' lifeboats, which meant the crew were unable to escape. Only three people survived, including one man found at sea and two who jumped off the ship. 'The Theodor Ruger also goes down but her lifeboats are in better condition, so even though she loses a few crew members, the majority get away in lifeboats and are saved – including two guys who scrambled off the Nantes,' Bennett added. Robinson, who shared the story on his YouTube channel, told CNN the wreck was discovered at a depth of 75 meters (246 feet) in the English Channel, 30 miles south-east of Plymouth last Fall. 'When you go down on wrecks, you look for things that might identify them,' Robinson said. 'It was right at the end of my dive and I'd found nothing so was a bit despondent.' But then he saw the broken plate, which proved to be a 'massive clue towards identifying' the vessel, he said. When Robinson dived the site again earlier this year, a second plate branded with the logo was found. Together with other details of the wreck – such as its build and dimension – the plate helped confirm the ship's identity. 'Every wreck is a time capsule,' Bennett said. 'When that wreck goes down, things are frozen in time, in the mud and in the surrounding areas. We get these little insights into what life onboard must have been like. The idea that you're looking at a plate that crewmen might have had their last meal on is very, very poignant. 'We suddenly find ourselves revisiting a tragedy from 1888, of coming to terms with that kind of horror that tells us a story about life in the maritime world in the late 19th century.' Part of the motivation for deep diving on shipwrecks is the detective work, as well as the opportunity to explore final frontiers, Robinson said. 'For a normal person like myself, there is nowhere left to explore – there's no more mountains left to go to, no more continents that haven't been found. The only place where you can do something completely out of the ordinary is to go to the bottom of the sea and explore and find things and identify them,' he added. 'I get a huge buzz out of that and in the UK we are so fortunate because around our shores are probably more wrecks than anywhere else in the world. I could probably dive every day for the rest of my life on a new wreck.'
Yahoo
2 days ago
- General
- Yahoo
Shipwreck mystery solved after nearly 140 years
The mystery of a maritime disaster has been solved after experts found a vessel that sank almost 140 years ago. Diver and explorer Dom Robinson identified the SS Nantes, off Plymouth, after examining the wreck site and finding crockery. Dr Harry Bennett, an expert in maritime history, said the dive team had found "the underwater archaeological equivalent of a needle in a haystack". Mr Robinson said solving the mystery ensured those who died were not forgotten. In November 1888, the SS Nantes, which was operated by the Cunard Steamship Company, collided with a German sailing vessel, the Theodor Ruger, said Dr Bennett. The crew spent "several hours" trying to save their ship, the honorary associate professor in history at the University of Plymouth said. "They used mattresses to plug the gap which had opened up in the haul of the SS Nantes," he said. "[The ship sank] with the loss of a substantial number of the crew. There were some 23-odd fatalities. There were three survivors." Bodies from the wreckage washed ashore at Talland Bay and Looe, in Cornwall, and "locals were confronted by this picture of horror, pieces of ship together with bodies," he said. Afterwards the "wreck was essentially lost, obviously you're dealing in a period with no satellite navigation," said Dr Bennett. He added while the crew tried to save the ship it "drifted for several hours, before it finally made its way to the bottom, sadly, with many of its crewmen on board". He said the wreck was lost until a local dive team identified it in 2024. Mr Robinson, who has been diving for about 35 years, said he heard about the unidentified wreck from the UK Hydrographic Office. He said the wreck "was clearly an early steamship when we got down there" but "at the end of my dive I found a broken piece of plate... I decided to bring it up to the surface [and] we found that had the Cunard Steamship crest on it". "It was then bingo, we've found it," he said. Dr Bennett said it was identified by the build and dimensions of the wreck, the technology on board, the cargo and "lastly and most telling, they find a plate on the back of which is stamped Cunard - this is a Cunard ship". "[It was] very methodical, very, very dedicated detective work," he said. More news stories for Devon Listen to the latest news for Devon Mr Robinson said: "This was an awful tragedy. One of the things I like to think is by solving mysteries and telling those stories I'm ensuring that those people aren't forgotten." Since the initial find, Mr Robinson said he had dived the wreck again and found a second piece of Cunard crockery, providing "even more confirmation". "There are very few mysteries left to explore in this world," he said. "As a normal human being like me, going in exploring shipwrecks and identifying shipwrecks, that is just something different to my normal life, and it's a fantastic feeling." Dr Bennett said "all the pieces fit and I think the local dive team are to be congratulated on a splendid piece of detective work which reveals this maritime disaster". He said he had looked at the footage and methodology and had confirmed they were right "beyond any reasonable shadow of a doubt, this is the SS Nantes". Follow BBC Devon on X, Facebook and Instagram. Send your story ideas to spotlight@ Follow BBC Cornwall on X, Facebook and Instagram Wreck thought to be WW2 storm-hit vessel Diver buys WW1 shipwreck for £300 on Facebook University of Plymouth
Yahoo
2 days ago
- General
- Yahoo
Shipwreck mystery solved after nearly 140 years
The mystery of a maritime disaster has been solved after experts found a vessel that sank almost 140 years ago. Diver and explorer Dom Robinson identified the SS Nantes, off Plymouth, after examining the wreck site and finding crockery. Dr Harry Bennett, an expert in maritime history, said the dive team had found "the underwater archaeological equivalent of a needle in a haystack". Mr Robinson said solving the mystery ensured those who died were not forgotten. In November 1888, the SS Nantes, which was operated by the Cunard Steamship Company, collided with a German sailing vessel, the Theodor Ruger, said Dr Bennett. The crew spent "several hours" trying to save their ship, the honorary associate professor in history at the University of Plymouth said. "They used mattresses to plug the gap which had opened up in the haul of the SS Nantes," he said. "[The ship sank] with the loss of a substantial number of the crew. There were some 23-odd fatalities. There were three survivors." Bodies from the wreckage washed ashore at Talland Bay and Looe, in Cornwall, and "locals were confronted by this picture of horror, pieces of ship together with bodies," he said. Afterwards the "wreck was essentially lost, obviously you're dealing in a period with no satellite navigation," said Dr Bennett. He added while the crew tried to save the ship it "drifted for several hours, before it finally made its way to the bottom, sadly, with many of its crewmen on board". He said the wreck was lost until a local dive team identified it in 2024. Mr Robinson, who has been diving for about 35 years, said he heard about the unidentified wreck from the UK Hydrographic Office. He said the wreck "was clearly an early steamship when we got down there" but "at the end of my dive I found a broken piece of plate... I decided to bring it up to the surface [and] we found that had the Cunard Steamship crest on it". "It was then bingo, we've found it," he said. Dr Bennett said it was identified by the build and dimensions of the wreck, the technology on board, the cargo and "lastly and most telling, they find a plate on the back of which is stamped Cunard - this is a Cunard ship". "[It was] very methodical, very, very dedicated detective work," he said. More news stories for Devon Listen to the latest news for Devon Mr Robinson said: "This was an awful tragedy. One of the things I like to think is by solving mysteries and telling those stories I'm ensuring that those people aren't forgotten." Since the initial find, Mr Robinson said he had dived the wreck again and found a second piece of Cunard crockery, providing "even more confirmation". "There are very few mysteries left to explore in this world," he said. "As a normal human being like me, going in exploring shipwrecks and identifying shipwrecks, that is just something different to my normal life, and it's a fantastic feeling." Dr Bennett said "all the pieces fit and I think the local dive team are to be congratulated on a splendid piece of detective work which reveals this maritime disaster". He said he had looked at the footage and methodology and had confirmed they were right "beyond any reasonable shadow of a doubt, this is the SS Nantes". Follow BBC Devon on X, Facebook and Instagram. Send your story ideas to spotlight@ Follow BBC Cornwall on X, Facebook and Instagram Wreck thought to be WW2 storm-hit vessel Diver buys WW1 shipwreck for £300 on Facebook University of Plymouth
BBC News
2 days ago
- General
- BBC News
Shipwreck mystery off Plymouth solved after almost 140 years
The mystery of a maritime disaster has been solved after experts found a vessel that sank almost 140 years and explorer Dom Robinson identified the SS Nantes, off Plymouth, after examining the wreck site and finding Harry Bennett, an expert in maritime history, said the dive team had found "the underwater archaeological equivalent of a needle in a haystack".Mr Robinson said solving the mystery ensured those who died were not forgotten. In November 1888, the SS Nantes, which was operated by the Cunard Steamship Company, collided with a German sailing vessel, the Theodor Ruger, said Dr crew spent "several hours" trying to save their ship, the honorary associate professor in history at the University of Plymouth said."They used mattresses to plug the gap which had opened up in the haul of the SS Nantes," he said."[The ship sank] with the loss of a substantial number of the crew. There were some 23-odd fatalities. There were three survivors."Bodies from the wreckage washed ashore at Talland Bay and Looe, in Cornwall, and "locals were confronted by this picture of horror, pieces of ship together with bodies," he said. Afterwards the "wreck was essentially lost, obviously you're dealing in a period with no satellite navigation," said Dr added while the crew tried to save the ship it "drifted for several hours, before it finally made its way to the bottom, sadly, with many of its crewmen on board".He said the wreck was lost until a local dive team identified it in Robinson, who has been diving for about 35 years, said he heard about the unidentified wreck from the UK Hydrographic Office. 'Bingo, we've found it' He said the wreck "was clearly an early steamship when we got down there" but "at the end of my dive I found a broken piece of plate... I decided to bring it up to the surface [and] we found that had the Cunard Steamship crest on it"."It was then bingo, we've found it," he said. Dr Bennett said it was identified by the build and dimensions of the wreck, the technology on board, the cargo and "lastly and most telling, they find a plate on the back of which is stamped Cunard - this is a Cunard ship"."[It was] very methodical, very, very dedicated detective work," he said. Mr Robinson said: "This was an awful tragedy. One of the things I like to think is by solving mysteries and telling those stories I'm ensuring that those people aren't forgotten."Since the initial find, Mr Robinson said he had dived the wreck again and found a second piece of Cunard crockery, providing "even more confirmation"."There are very few mysteries left to explore in this world," he said."As a normal human being like me, going in exploring shipwrecks and identifying shipwrecks, that is just something different to my normal life, and it's a fantastic feeling."Dr Bennett said "all the pieces fit and I think the local dive team are to be congratulated on a splendid piece of detective work which reveals this maritime disaster". He said he had looked at the footage and methodology and had confirmed they were right "beyond any reasonable shadow of a doubt, this is the SS Nantes".
