Willy's dumped in the Pacific

[Jimmyb]

The locals witnessing the bizarre act by the US military personnel of destructing the wealth that they would never see again was perceived as an act of madness.

As the war in the pacific was coming to a close and all of the troops were being transported home to the US there was this whole township that the Americans had built and all of the machinery that they had used to build it.

Million Dollar Point is where many millions of dollars, worth of equipment and war machinery was dumped at the end of the second World War. The island of Espiritu Santo is littered with WWII relics.

Massive amounts of heavy equipment were bulldozed into the sea by the departing Americans. SS President Coolidge, a luxury liner turned troop carrier, sunk meters from shore. Exploring the jungle-like interior and wreck-strewn waters.

In the wake of the Japanese rise after Pearl Harbour.

Buttons was one of the two bases that US military had established on the archipelago; the other base was Roses, which was built on another island not far from Buttons, called Efate.

The construction of the bases was fairly rapid, and the structures were erected and personnel moved in within weeks.

Within days several islands became bustling American hubs to the surprise of the locals who had never see such scale of activity on their islands.

[Tyvokka]

When America left the military base after the war, the remaining goods — everything from weaponry to bottles of Coca-Cola — were offered to the French and British at a very low price, 6 cents to the dollar. However, the colonizers were going on the assumption that should they refuse to buy the items, the U.S. military would be forced to simply leave them behind for free.

The Americans were having none of this. To spite the British and French, the military made the rash decision to drive all of the vehicles, food, clothing, drinks and other equipment to a wharf on the southern coast of the island. The army then drove all of the vehicles into the sea, used bulldozers to dump the rest of the supplies over the wharf, before also driving the bulldozers into the sea, ensuring that the European countries would not be able to get their hands on the items at all, free or otherwise.

Millions of dollars worth of goods were completely destroyed over the period of those two days, rendered unusable at the bottom of the ocean. As a result of the dumping, the waters were contaminated with fuel, rubber, metal and other waste, leaving the local Vanuatuans shocked at the carnage, though they looted what they could once the Americans had finally departed.

Great diving spot

[Sahara Stu]

See. They didnt need snorkels then

[Nanook]

When they left PNG a big pit was dug and everything was pushed into it.

A mate of mine has a 1940's Harley that was salvaged from one such hole when they were setting up a mine there. The truck that was pushed on top of it leaked oil which helped preserve the bike.

It was far from ridable but it didn't take a great deal to restore it to it's former glory.

[OKA4wd]

remember alvy mangles world safari when they stopped at palmyra everything left even the fuel, dont think it would be quite the same now

[Banshee]

Originally Posted by Sahara Stu

See. They didnt need snorkels then

Remember Maxim 32. Anything is amphibious if you can get it back out of the water.

http://www.schlockmercenary.com/2013-09-29

[resident e]

Iv been to million dollar point, back in 2000. There where a heep of old ww2 vehicals getting around. Story has it not long after the war some aussie went over there and recoved some earth moving equipment and got them running and the locals have never forgot that. They where used to make and mantine the roads and air stripe of many decades.