Panama event 1976

bongopete · 07-10-2009, 08:20 AM

Does anyone have any information on the 'event' of November 1976 in which US Army was involved in operations near the Panama Canal?
Apparently required use of the Sturgis nuclear power barge which was anchored in Gatun lake to power a temporary site set up to handle some type of scientific operations in the jungle after a several Canal Zone Survey employees came across some small ruin that was first thought to have been Mayan.
Some people from the National Geographic station down there were involved in this as well.
Apparently it was quickly found that the ruin was not Mayan. I know that a lot of people were involved in clearing the object of years of rain forest growth and that several people became very ill (two deaths).
Whatever it was, it was excavated and moved down to the lake with considerable difficulty under the cover of an Army anti guerilla excercise that month and moved to Rodman Naval Station where it was shipped....somewhere.
I remember being told that it would be kept under cover for the next 30 years. Well, its past that now, and I have not found a single thing about it.

kidflash2008 · 07-10-2009, 10:51 AM

I have Google searched it and cannot find anything about any incident that you describe. I also put in the naval base, and there is nothing about that incident happening their either. It would definitely be at some alternative or fringe sites, but there is nothing. Can you give any references to where you heard this from?

bongopete · 07-10-2009, 11:27 AM

I was in the service down there at the time and participated in some of the movement of personnel by helicopter from Albrook Army Airfield to the site. Actually, there were two work sites and a temporary station which was set up to work from. As I remember, and I may be off on this now, but the two work sites were named 'N' and 'Y' (November and Yankee). Or the science station was one of those names.
I don't know when it was originally uncovered, but we were involved in Nov 76. There had been a lot of speculation that it had been something connected with chemical warfare testing from WW2 or a broken arrow..but that wouldnt explain why it was mistaken for a Mayan ruin or why the Nat Geo people came over to take a look or whatever they did.

07-10-2009, 08:20 AM	#1
bongopete Junior Investigator Join Date: Jul 2009 Posts: 2	Panama event 1976 Does anyone have any information on the 'event' of November 1976 in which US Army was involved in operations near the Panama Canal? Apparently required use of the Sturgis nuclear power barge which was anchored in Gatun lake to power a temporary site set up to handle some type of scientific operations in the jungle after a several Canal Zone Survey employees came across some small ruin that was first thought to have been Mayan. Some people from the National Geographic station down there were involved in this as well. Apparently it was quickly found that the ruin was not Mayan. I know that a lot of people were involved in clearing the object of years of rain forest growth and that several people became very ill (two deaths). Whatever it was, it was excavated and moved down to the lake with considerable difficulty under the cover of an Army anti guerilla excercise that month and moved to Rodman Naval Station where it was shipped....somewhere. I remember being told that it would be kept under cover for the next 30 years. Well, its past that now, and I have not found a single thing about it.

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07-10-2009, 10:51 AM	#2
kidflash2008 Senior Investigator Join Date: Sep 2008 Posts: 1,699	I have Google searched it and cannot find anything about any incident that you describe. I also put in the naval base, and there is nothing about that incident happening their either. It would definitely be at some alternative or fringe sites, but there is nothing. Can you give any references to where you heard this from?

07-10-2009, 11:27 AM	#3
bongopete Junior Investigator Join Date: Jul 2009 Posts: 2	I was in the service down there at the time and participated in some of the movement of personnel by helicopter from Albrook Army Airfield to the site. Actually, there were two work sites and a temporary station which was set up to work from. As I remember, and I may be off on this now, but the two work sites were named 'N' and 'Y' (November and Yankee). Or the science station was one of those names. I don't know when it was originally uncovered, but we were involved in Nov 76. There had been a lot of speculation that it had been something connected with chemical warfare testing from WW2 or a broken arrow..but that wouldnt explain why it was mistaken for a Mayan ruin or why the Nat Geo people came over to take a look or whatever they did.