Dear Committee members of the Old Head of Kinsale Museum,
I understand that the ‘Lusitania Project 17’ Team have been refused permission to dive to the wreck of the Lusitania this year, and I’m writing to your committee to kindly ask you to reverse this decision.
I’ve been following the results of the dives from this team for the last six or seven years, and they seem to have been documenting the wreck in an excellent manner, and adding to the knowledge of this tragic sinking. Their results also show that the wreck is seriously deteriorating, which is not surprising having been there for nearly 109 years. So, this really emphasizes the need for this group’s dives to continue, so that the wreck is fully documented before the ravages of time make that impossible.
I have a very strong interest in all aspects of the Lusitania, but particularly the sinking on May 7th 1915 and the circumstances surrounding this terrible event. My mother, only 8 months at the time, my grandparents, and my great uncle, were all coming back from Canada because of the start of WWI, and as fate would have it, they sailed on the Lusitania when she was sunk. My mother and grandparents all survived, but my great uncle perished, and like so many other victims, his body was never recovered. My relatives were the Wickings-Smith family, who emigrated to Canada in 1911/1912, and settled in Victoria B.C.
So, I ask again for your committee to allow the ‘Lusitania Project 17’ team to continue their dives to the wreck, so that their excellent work in documenting this wonderful old liner can carry on.
Yours sincerely
Richard Woods