In a very specific area of the Atlantic Ocean, three spots make up the Bermuda Triangle: Miami, Florida; San Juan, Puerto Rico; and the island of Bermuda. Although the precise location remains uncertain, it constitutes the most famous marine graveyard worldwide. Several ships and planes wrecks are said to sleep forever, deep down the area’s depths.
One of the first witnesses of the Triangle’s mysteries is none other than Christopher Columbus, who described, during his journey to the New World in 1492, lightning striking into the sea, and some strange light surrounding the ship at night. But we probably can’t take too seriously the man who mistook America for India, right? Let’s investigate another story.
In December 1872, the Canadian ship Dei Gratia was sailing off the Azores Islands (near Portugal) when she came across a brigantine vessel named Mary Celeste. Aboard, everything seemed normal – food supplies, water, the sailors’ possessions were at the right place – although there was just that one thing: nobody remained on the ship.
Oh, right. That thing. No sign of captain Benjamin Briggs, or his wife and daughter. No sign of any of the crew members. And the only lifeboat is missing.
From that point on, research was conducted in order to shed light on the case. Potential scenarios included (pick your favorite) bad weather, giant squid attack, insurance fraud, or competition for the world record at a hide-and-seek game. Nevertheless, none got widely accepted.
The examples to support the ‘Devil’s Triangle’ mystery are many, and there are very few cases where a pilot or captain can report about having experienced it. The ones who did indicated that their control panels had gone out of control, that their instruments didn’t respond or that the electricity sources were suddenly shut off.
Anyways, several researchers have argued that the number of mysterious disappearances in the area had been overestimated, exaggerated or simply crafted, widening the grey area featuring the Bermuda Triangle.
Let’s just hope Benjamin Briggs ended up safely, on some deserted island, where he spent time clinking rum bottles to mankind appetite for unsolved questions – along with Elvis Presley and Abe Lincoln.
- Mayorca, S. (2005), Chroniques du mystère, ed. De Vecchi, pp. 113-132