DATELINE: 10 April, 2002

TUG OF LOVE OVER SOMALI ARTEFACTS
Divers who recovered various small items - such as safety razors and cold cream - from the wreck of the Somali, were shocked when the Receiver of Wreckinformed them that the owner wanted them back.
The popular Northumberland dive site is well known for the large quantities of small items that were once carried as cargo, but which now litter the seabed. Many divers who took advantage of last year's wreck amnesty to declare their apparently worthless finds were bemused when asked to provide photos to the Receiver of Wreck (RoW).
"Every owner has rights to what they own," explained Sophia Exelby, the RoW. "If the owner wants their property back, it is our job to get an independent valuer to make a salvage award, based on the criteria set out in the current legislation."
The monetary value of the recovered items may be nominal, but clearly there is sentimental value to the divers involved.
"The salvage award cannot exceed the value of the find," explained the RoW.
So while the divers are unlikely to receive much in the way of compensation for giving up their finds, the monetary value to the owner is equally insignificant. Perhaps money isn't everything, after all. See the Wreck Tour of the Somali.

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