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Show those drawn to the sea, For still a menace Nearly 35 years after World War II, sunken German submarines hidden beneath Atlantic remain waters, their hulks laden with torpedoes and other explosives Government officials say the wrecks pose a serious threat to human life Safety devices built into torpedoes may have corroded, increasing the danger lie in shallow At least six waters off the Eastern Seaboard and ts still-liv- e Gulf Coast U S Navy records, anaof the lyzed by Daniel A Koski-KareProfessional of Archeologists, Society show one off Newport, R I , another off the Virginia coast, one southeast of Nantucket, Mass , two near the North Carolina shore, and another off New Orleans With the recent surge in scuba diving, these submarines have become playgrounds for the curious and for All six vessels can be treasure-hunter- s ll reached using diving equipment available to the general public, according to Koski Karell Over the last several years, a "cot tage industry" has surfaced along the oast, c hartering tours to explore the remains of the Nazi subs Government concern about divers' safety has threatened the small industry, raised questions of international law and touched a painful nerve for the West Germans Concerned groups and citizens are preparing petitions to block rumored demolition of the subs by the IJ S Navy "These U boats are an important ultural resource," Koski Karell says, "irreplac eable time capsules from our past that symbolize a significant event the courage and sat rifices of two nations former enemies but now triends " The Navy has no authority to ensure the "safety associated with underwater obec ts otf the coast, unless they belong to the Navy or an offic lal request to investigate has been received from other government agen-- t les," a Navy spokesman says I or one Nazi wreck, such a request has been made, and although the PAR ADI APRIL 22 19?') Salvager Ed Huff holds flare gun Other recovered from the 2. Navy will neither confirm nor deny that other hazardous exist, a Senatorial aide involved in the case says, "It will not be the only submarine the Navy will be asked to disarm The Navy realizes that as well " At present, the controversy is fosunk in internacused on the tional waters some 29 miles off the coast of Morehead City, N C Within weeks of its discovery in 1975 by a trawler, divers began exploring the Soon the exact location of the sub and a description of its explosives were inc luded in the diving handbook Wreck ' 'The fact that this is being featured as an attraction has more than compounded the danger," says Sen Lowell P Weicker )r (R , Conn) "When people say, Don't miss seeing the ship and its live ammunition,' you're inviting disaster" The Federal Republic ot Germany has given permission to disarm or destroy the sub but urges that every effort be made to ensure proper burial of the human remains The Navy decision to disarm, destroy or preserve could affect the tuture of countless other wrecks that litter the coast from Maine to Florida Many still contain live munitions But final action is be ing delayed 'Officially," says Senator Weicker 'the United States is honoring the sub as a national war grave " So Navy divers have not yet entered the U boat to survey its contents "The difficulty is not one of logistics as far as the Navy is concerned," he says 'Its just that nobody wants to establish a precedent for disturbing these vessels The West Germans look on their as we look on our sunken ships they are not just wrec ks but tombs for lost sailors " But in what Weicker considers a "national disgrace," the underwater grave has been desecrated by sport divers collec ting skulls and other skel souvenirs taken by divers and put up for sale include human bones etal remains from the sub As many as 13 members of the crew went down with their boat, although official accounts conflict as to the exact number Divers reportedly have stolen bones for souvenirs Though heavily encrusted and a sanctuary for marine life, the 2, divers say, is well preserved Dozens of diving companies along the North Carolina coast capitalize on the ship by providing tours Some clients pay as much as $200 per charter One dive shop in lacksonville, N C , maintained a display of skulls, finger bones, clavicles, pelvises, femurs, and other bones, along with a Luger pistol nd flare gun At the pinnacle of Nazi power in cruised from 1942, some 20 Nova Scotia to Key West, but by 1943, Allied air attacks were restricting submarine production and soon after, most of the subs were recalled to defend Germany Still, the wolf pack fleet had taken its toll About 14 million tons ot Allied shipping was lost, including 2603 merchant ships and 175 Allied naval vessels But U boat fatalities were also considerable, with 733 destroyed by Allied forces Why after so many years do gov ernment officials consider these hulks say they primarily depend on commercial ships to report detected hazards The danger is rot so remote Last Sept 23, a fisherman trawling off the New Jersey shore caught a torpedo in his net Although Navy records show was sunk within the area, no the weapon was identified as belonglocation ing to a Nazi submarine The unknown torpedo was disarmed In another incident, several years ago a trawler operating out of Norfolk, Va, pulled a German torpedo from the ocean floor According to Rear Adm Roy F Hoffmann, former commander of Charleston Naval Base and commandant of the 6th Naval District, the torpedo exploded, killing several fishermen But removing the threat presented will not be easy, and the by the final decision on disarming or destroying the submarine will not be made until government divers have inspected the sub's interior Coast Guard records show as many as four torpedoes may be locked in the hull Last September, a team of 19 Navy divers surveyed the exterior At least two torpedoes were identified One is solidly lodged in a firing tube The other lies in the sand, separated from U-3- its warhead particularly the U 352? to Weicker, "the growing According of this wreck with sport popularity divers made it an issue " But the wreck may pose a threat to to remove the dismembered torpedo, a job considered ' low risk ' But disturbing those locked in the sub and the one jammed in the tube is thought to be ' high risk " A government ordnance expert close to the project, who asked not to be identified, believes there is really no choice but demolition ' The risk involved in disarmament far outweighs local fishermen as well, Navy officials sav To lessen the possibility that a fishing rig will snag the sub, geological survey charts are being revised, marking the hulk as a wreck with unexploded ordnance But ocean c urrents c an invalidate the charts In 1968, Navy divers discovered the 548 off Cape remains of Va , about 50 miles from where it was reported sunk 2 3 years earlier In such cases, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration ottiuals he says Until the final decision is made, neither international law nor the U S Department of justice, officials say, can stoj) civilian divers trom entering the ship and removing artifacts, human or otherwise ' want to see if we c an handle this situation without destroying the sub, mainly because it is the final resting place for some ot those sailors,' Sena tor Weicker says ' Whatever is done should bo done with respect " i? 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