A Ghost from 1884 Returns
A violent nor’easter battered the East Coast this weekend with heavy rain and gale-force winds. The storm uncovered a 19th-century shipwreck buried under the sand on Nantucket. On Saturday, a beach appearance was made by a waterlogged timber pallet fastened with seaweed and rusted nails. According to the New York Post, video shared by the Nantucket Current shows the discovery. The wooden segment likely belongs to the Warren Sawyer, a schooner that crashed nearby in 1884.
The ship carried cotton and scrap iron before it veered off course. Around 11 p.m. on Dec. 22, 1884, it was driven onto Nantucket by gale-force winds. New York Post reports that additional pieces of this wreck were found in the area in December 2022. Scientists spent months researching to confirm the identity of the new fragment. Massachusetts Archeologist David Robinson told the Nantucket Current that the work was difficult. “The more interesting information I looked at, the more that I found,” Robinson said. He noted that fastening hardware found earlier did not match the ship’s records perfectly.
Storm Fury Across the Coast
Beyond the historic discovery, the storm left a trail of destruction across the eastern seaboard. Hundreds of thousands of people lost power in states from Massachusetts to Delaware. According to the New York Post, more than 27,600 New York customers lacked power by 2 a.m. on Saturday. The storm began pounding the metro area late Friday night. By Monday, officials anticipate the region will receive as much as 8 inches of rainfall. Governor Kathy Hochul warned that the tides would be higher due to the full moon. She stated that waves could reach 20 feet in some areas.
Coastal flooding inundated streets in Queens, Staten Island, and the Jersey Shore. Two police officers were injured in Glendale after a tree and lightpole fell on their patrol car. A Nissan SUV then slammed into their idling vehicle while they waited for help. Power lines and fallen trees caused darkness for a minimum of 100,000 homes along the Atlantic Coast. New York Post reports that nearly 30,000 customers in New Jersey and 20,000 in New York remained without power as of 7 a.m. Saturday. The storm also claimed a life in Brooklyn. A 56-year-old man died after a tree fell on him during 45 mph gusts.
Surfers Ignore Danger Warnings
Despite the deadly conditions, some people ignored official warnings to stay out of the water. Off Rockaway Beach in Queens, approximately 20 surfers were observed tackling the storms. Preston Head, 35, traveled from Laguna Beach, California, specifically for the extreme surf. His board snapped in two during the ride. “The wave broke my surf board,” he said with a laugh. “It was probably a 8-foot wave.” Head claimed he “had some of the best barrels that I’ve ever experienced in my life.”
Locals like Ron McMaster and Ryo Kuroki also joined the surfers in the roughly 12-foot waves. McMaster, a software engineer, warned that people die when waves drift them into rocks. “Today is for the experts. McMaster remarked, “If you understand the risks, today offers excellent surfing conditions.” Kuroki laughed off safety warnings, saying that “surfing is a sport about rebelling.” Governor Hochul issued multiple statements urging New Yorkers to stay away from the water. She called the conditions life-threatening due to rip currents and high surf. Some surfers, like Bobby Gonzalez, were forced to abort their plans. “The waves are enormous,” he said. “They are very difficult to even ride.”
