Jimmy Kelly called, "You boys ready to go?"
"Whenever you are," Rick called back. He picked up his heavy three-tank block from where it rested against the rail and handed it to Scotty. While his friend held the rig, Rick got into it. Then he performed the same service for Scotty. The tanks were heavy.
Tony and Zircon, similarly equipped, came out of the amidships cabin with Steve Ames. Jimmy had loaned equipment from the frogmen's supplies, to enable the group to work around the wreck longer.
The search party assembled on the landing stage. Jimmy had split his teams into two groups. They would dive in relays.
"We'll look the situation over, then get to work," Jimmy instructed. "How many have wrecking bars?"
Four of the UDT gang held them up.
"All right. Turn and turn about. Work for ten minutes then pass them to your mates. Watch your hoses, especially when working inside. Okay. Let's go."
They slipped into the water four at a time, Rick and Scotty in the first four. Once in the water, the weight of the heavy tanks vanished. The boys had removed weights from their belts to allow for the extra tanks and for more than ten additional pounds of air on the descent.
A pair of frogmen payed out a heavy rope, taking the reel down with them in order to provide a direct link from wreck to ship. On the way up the divers would pause at knots in the rope to decompress, allowing time for compressed nitrogen to get out of their blood streams.
With the boys and the scientists, Jimmy went over all visible portions of the wreck. He summed up his attitude with an elaborate shrug and spreading of his hands that said he didn't know where to begin. For his frogmen, he made a sweeping gesture that told them to tackle the wreck anywhere. The frogmen moved in, operating in pairs. The water clouded rapidly with silt, particles of marine growth, and fish eggs.