A team of British divers has discovered the wreck of the USS Tampa, the largest U.S. naval loss of World War One, 107 years after it was sunk. The vessel, a U.S. Coast Guard cutter, was found approximately 50 miles off the coast of Newquay in southwest England.
All 131 people aboard the Tampa died when it was torpedoed by a German submarine on September 26, 1918. The ship had been on convoy duty and was heading to a port in Wales when it was struck. A secondary explosion caused the vessel to sink in just three minutes.
The discovery was made by the Gasperados Dive Team, who collaborated with the U.S. Coast Guard Historian's Office over three years. The divers used historical records and technical data to confirm the wreck site, including archival images of the ship's fittings and weaponry.
Admiral Kevin Lunday, commandant of the U.S. Coast Guard, said: “When the Tampa was lost with all hands in 1918, it left an enduring grief in our service. Locating the wreck connects us to their sacrifice and reminds us that devotion to duty endures.”
The wreck lies over 300 feet below the surface. An image released by the Coast Guard shows the sheared hull on the ocean floor. Among the dead were 111 Coast Guardsmen, four U.S. Navy personnel, 16 Royal Navy personnel, and civilians, including 11 Black crewmembers, the first minority Coast Guardsmen killed in combat.
Steve Mortimer, leader of the dive team, confirmed the discovery on Facebook, stating: “TAMPA is of huge importance to the United States and the relatives of everyone who died that day. Their final resting place is now known.”
