A ship that sank mysteriously 86 years ago has resurfaced as Utah's Great Salt Lake continues to dry up
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- Water levels in Utah's Great Salt Lake have reached historic lows revealing a shipwreck.
- The W.E. Marsh No. 4 sank in mysterious circumstances in 1936.
- Great Salt Lake State Park Manager Dave Shearer said, "It's very exciting to see a piece of history."
Plunging water levels in Utah's Great Salt Lake have revealed the wreckage of a 120-year-old ship, officials from the Great Salt Lake State Park announced.
The receding water of the lake, which has shrunk to about half its size according to ABC4, has exposed the intact hull of the W.E. Marsh No. 4.
According to the Utah Department of Natural Resources, the ship was originally part of the Southern Pacific Railroad fleet, transporting workers building the Lucin Cutoff, a 102-mile railroad.
—Utah DNR (@UtahDNR) December 14, 2022
Speaking to ABC4, Great Salt Lake State Park Manager Dave Shearer said that the ship plied the lake's waters in several different roles.
"This was one of the first boats that came out here in 1902 to build the trestle, so it was fairing people back and forth to the work site. It was also used to haul or push barges around," he said.
In 1936, the 40-foot craft was gifted to the Sea Scouts "to teach young kids the art of boating, and also for community boat races, and other programs," Shearer told ABC4, but then it mysteriously sank.
—Great Salt Lake USP (@GreatSaltLakeSP) December 14, 2022
"There's a lot of wrecks out here on the Great Salt Lake that has started to surface, and it's really interesting to go out there and see them," Shearer told local news outlet KTVX.
Shearer has said that "there's a rich history out here," and the park encourages people to come and see the sites.
"It's very exciting to see a piece of history that people can come out and see, but it's also sad that the lake is this low," Shearer told ABC4.
"We've got trouble out here. Problems," he warned.
—Senator Mitt Romney (@SenatorRomney) December 9, 2022
The Great Salt Lake, the largest saltwater lake in the Western Hemisphere, is drying up due to a megadrought, PBS has reported. The impact of the drought is exacerbated by climate change, causing a decline in rainfall and people using more water than the lake can sustain.
Speaking last week about the Great Salt Lake and its diminishing size, Senator Mitt Romney said: "A shrinking Great Salt Lake poses a significant threat to Utah and our neighboring states."
To save the Lake, we need to dramatically reduce our water usage in Utah and the West."
He warned that "poisonous" dust from the lake could damage the health not just of people in Utah but across the USA.