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RARE Friendly Floatees BEAVER Bath Toy ~ 1992 Duck Spill OCEANOGRAPHY - $800 (North Canton)
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I'm not local to Washington, but you can search similar title on eBay to find it in my shop..$800
RARE Maritime Collectible! FLOTSAM
Authentic
The First Years'
"Friendly Floatees"
Red BEAVER Bath Toy
4.5" x 2" x 2"
1 of 7,200
INCLUDES:
Square Acrylic Display Case/Foam Waves Setting
(4.5" x 4.5" x 4.75")
THE STORY:
The "Friendly Floatees" story refers to an accidental 1992 ocean spill of 28,800 plastic bath toys. The shipment consisted of exactly 7,200 cardboard cartons, with each carton containing a yellow duck, a red beaver, a blue turtle, and a green frog. Swept into the Pacific Ocean, these toys were tracked for decades by oceanographers to help map and understand global surface ocean currents.
The spill happened on January 10, 1992, when 12 cargo containers fell overboard from the ship Ever Laurel during a severe storm in the North Pacific Ocean en route from Hong Kong to the United States. One of the ruptured containers released these First Years, Inc. plastic bath toys into the sea. Because the toys were made of sealed plastic, they remained buoyant and began to drift across the water.
About 10 months later, in late 1992, the first Floatees began washing up on the shores of Alaska. Oceanographer Curtis Ebbesmeyer recognized the unique opportunity this provided to track global ocean circulation. By enlisting the help of beachcombers, coastal workers, and the general public to report when and where they found the toys, Ebbesmeyer and his team were able to map the toys' massive, multi-decade journey.
THANKS FOR LOOKING!
*The last photo shows the original four bath toys and how each of them appeared after much sun bleaching/fading. The beaver started out bright red!