Glacier County chief., 1939-02-17
DEEP-SEA DIVER
REMINISCES OVER
ODD EXPERIENCES
Wife Worries Over Wet Feet
When He Goes on Trips
For Groceries.

FAIRPORT HARBOR, OHIO
How deep-sea divers lasso fish-just
for the fun of twas told here by
Harry Reinhartsen, working on the
old E. G. Mathiott, sunken ship
in Fairport harbor.
Eyes, we used to catch them that
way down by Miami" the diver
said, polishing the glass of his he'll
met. This certain species of fish
is very lazy and we would sneak up
on them with loop of wire, slip it
over their tails, and a helper up
above would hoist EN- up to the
boat before they knew what had
happened"
The fish weighed from so to 60
pounds and were good eating, Rein
harrison said. He and another diver
INDUCED in the lassoing sport while
working on a sewer ,project-"dur-
ing recess, you might say"
Reinhartsen, who is Sc, was the
diver who removed the first body
from the submarine Ssh, which was
rammed and sunk in Long Island
sound. Every man died at his post
and Reinhartsen worked in 139 feet
of water during salvage operations.
Worked on SAB Also.
He worked also on the SAB. which
sank while on a trial run off Bridge
port, Conn, in rs feet of water. All
of the crew escaped by coming out
a torpedo tube in the bow, SO the
diver was sent down with an cleo
trio torch to cut hole in the bottom
to permit air to be pumped into the
hull to raise the sunken vessel.
II got a bad case of bends on
that job" the veteran diver said.
1T wasn't that l was working so
deep as that stayed down too long
and assembled too rapidly. Bends
are caused by gas bubbles forming
in the blood under the terrific pres
sure. Nothing happens until you
come up. Then the gas bubbles out
of the blood, like a bottle of pop
just opened. This causes painful
cramps-or death if they get to the
heart"
One of his jobs, Reinhartscn was
sent to the bottom of Lake Mich.
gan-2l0 feet down-to inspect the
wreck of ship suspected of having
been sunk for the insurance.
Since the pay of divers is pro-
portional to the depth at which they
are forced to work, he receives Sl36
a day for his efforts. and as he
could work only 20 minutes daily,
because of the pressure, his pay
figured to about S408 an hour. Ac-
tually it was considerably less, be.
cause, after working only 20 min.
utes at this depth, Reinhartsen had
to spend three and one-half hours
in ascending to the surface by de-
grees to avoid the bends"
Testimony Wins Suit.
On the strength of his testimony
that the seacocks in the bottom of
the ship had been opened, the in
surance company won a suit, releas-
ing it from liability.
Reinhartsen is married and says
he has his wife pretty well trained"
and accustomed to the risks he un-
dergoes. However, on one job on
which he YVES required to search a
reservoir near .'-rsey City for the
body of a fisherma" in ITO feet of
water, his wife became worried. One
diver had been killed on the job
sucked into water intake at the
bottom.
THAT got my wife" Reinhartsen
said. 'She called me up at quitting
time one night and begged me to
leave the job But went home and
talked TO her several hours and con-
WINGED her that it was all right. Next
day l went down and found the man
after about 10 minutes.
Funny thing" he said. "she wor-
ries more now when I'm out getting
the groceries or something. Afraid
I'll get my feet wet-maybe get