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marcelftw
I don't get it ... from the intro it seems the shark took away living human down in the water. From the conclusion, it seems the shark only bite the dead humans floating with the living human. Not even "taking them" ... a weird read.
lawlessone
The bit at the start is the editors note that seems to be wrong.
Waterluvian
The editor's note reminds us of a story told in a movie. The interview concludes with a testimony that it didn't happen that way.
speg
The editors note at the beginning also asks: "But what is the real story?"
mosselman
I thought the same and was tense until the end, expecting at any moment a description of living people getting dragged away by sharks.
shams93
It makes sense, humans are not normal food for sharks. However once you're dead you're just floating meat in the water, the shark can take you without risking any injury to itself. Sharks are more intelligent than we generally assume, most shark attacks are not to eat people, they take a chunk out of a person by mistake.
mannykannot
I'm not sure that it is quite that clear-cut - if you are vaguely seal-shaped, and furthermore not moving with the speed and agility of a healthy seal, you might push a big shark's 'looks like food' button.

Staying together in a big, tight group might have been key.

[dead] 11235813213455
There's a "But what is the real story?"

happy to see some real and not deformed story about sharks

RickJWagner
Wow. Unimagineable.

I hope we never have such a war again.

djbelieny
We won't. If any new conflict actually escalates to the proportions of a world war it'll be much much worse than the world wars of the past, it'll be a thermonuclear holocaust, an extinction scale event. Apparently, we as a species, have learned nothing.
joekrill
I don't suppose there's any way to listen to the audio of these? Is it public? Or online? All of the "oral history" links are 404s.
michaelcampbell
I wonder how many people were introduced to this story from that scene in "Jaws"...
joshstrange
Dear god, the scrolling is breakneck due to some stupid JS plugin or something
KnightOfWords
A truly disturbing yet essential read.

Sounds like the reports of shark attacks on the living were greatly exaggerated, but its no wonder if men were hallucinating from dehydration and fever.

GurnB
I recommend the following book that details the U.S.S. Indianapolis.

In Harm's Way: The Sinking of the U.S.S. Indianapolis and the Extraordinary Story of Its Survivors by Doug Stanton (Mass Market Paperback)

sizzzzlerz
Sharks or no, it still had to be pretty terrifying to be floating in the ocean without knowing when or if you were going to be rescued. But, like most stories taken from actual events, there always seems to be a person or persons who step up to help others without regard to their own well-being. I hope Capt. Haynes received recognition for his efforts in keeping so many alive.
joshuaheard
I read recently that Steven Spielberg wanted to make Jaws 2 about the U.S.S. Indianapolis, but the studio took the series in another direction so he quit.