US Coast Guard Cutter Tampa Found After 107 Years

0:00It's April 30th, I'm Cory with the story, and this is Tampa Bay News today. Your AI-powered local news. A British dive team just found the wreck of the US Coast Guard Cutter Tampa lost for 107 years after a German torpedo sank at during World War I. That single hit on September 26, 1918 took all 131 crew members to the ocean floor 300 feet down, 50 miles off Cornwall. It was the biggest single naval loss for US forces in that war. The Tampa had been escorting a convoy, but peeled off around 4pm because it was running low on coal and needed to refuel in Wales. By 8.15pm, a German sub spotted it and fired. A secondary blast followed, likely from cold dust or depth charges, and the ship vanished fast. The crew hailed from everywhere. Coast Guardsmen, Navy sailors, Brits, even immigrants from Russia and Norway. Eleven black members were among the first minority Coast Guardsmen killed in combat, leaving a deep scar on the service that still echoes today.

1:03This volunteer team, the Gasparados, had hunted the wreck since 2023, making 10 dive trips with help from historians. The Coast Guard confirmed it using old photos of the ship's bell, wheel, and gear. Now the Coast Guard's planning robotic dives to learn more, honoring that devotion to duty that never fades.