The U-28 Creature

I've always had an interest in cryptozoology but this 'creature' is something that has only came to my attention very recently.

In short, the U-28 was a German U-Boat that sunk the British steamer Iberian in 1915. As the steamer began to sink, it exploded causing wreckage to fly up to 100 feet into the air, and also something stranger than fiction - As the explosion occurred, it apparently blew a 60ft long gigantic sea creature into the air. This creature apparently resembled a gigantic crocodile.

What makes this story even more remarkable is that this was reported by the Commander Freiherr George G von Forstner. He recalls his tale here..

"On July 30, 1915, our U-28 torpedoed the British steamer Iberian, which was carrying a rich cargo across the North Atlantic. The steamer sank so swiftly that its bow stuck up almost vertically into the air. Moments later the hull of the Iberian disappeared. The wreckage remained beneath the water for approximately twenty-five seconds, at a depth that was clearly impossible to assess, when suddenly there was a violent explosion, which shot pieces of debris - among them a gigantic aquatic animal - out of the water to a height of approximately 80-feet."

"At that moment I had with me in the conning tower six of my officers of the watch, including the chief engineer, the navigator, and the helmsman. Simultaneously we all drew one another's attention to this wonder of the seas, which was writhing and struggling among the debris. We were unable to identify the creature, but all of us agreed that it resembled an aquatic crocodile, which was about 60-feet long, with four limbs resembling large webbed feet, a long, pointed tail and a head which also tapered to a point. Unfortunately we were not able to take a photograph, for the animal sank out of sight after ten or fifteen seconds."

The commanders report of this, certainly adds some credence to the story. As discussed by 'Unknown Explorers'.

One important thing to note about this encounter is the manner in which the captain recorded the encounter. In general submarine captains are not known to be prone to exaggeration, leading some to believe that he would not detail such an encounter in any other way but as it happened. Also there would be absolutely no reason to concoct such a fantastic story knowing, as we all do, that the majority of people who report strange encounters are generally looked upon as crazy and meet with only ridicule.

In total there were five crew members aboard the U-28 that supposedly witnessed this event. Non seemingly with anything to gain from telling an elaborate tale like this.

It's certainly a strange story - That a 60ft long gigantic, prehistoric crocodile would just happen to be swimming right about the wreckage at the time of the explosion. A few researchers have even theorized that the Iberian may have even been transporting the creature which would seem more plausible than it just simply appearing. That said, what would a British steamer be doing transporting a sea monster across the Atlantic for? Who knows.

Due to where and when this occurred, there's absolutely nothing to go on other than the official report, but i thought I'd share it anyway as it's definitely something that captured my imagination.

I've always thought it was simply luck that it happened to be there at the right time. Maybe it didn't die but was knocked unconscious from the blast wave?

If it was being transported, most likely for scientific purposes or for someone's secret menagerie.

Here's a link to a blog post by Mike Dash at Forteana.org (Charles Fort Institute) that you may want to read. He points out that at least 61 men survived the sinking of the Iberian, including several Americans. Survivors' accounts of the sinking were published in newspapers at the time and not one of these men made any mention of the monster.

In fact, the first mention of it wasn't until 1933, in an article about the Loch Ness Monster that the Baron von Forstner wrote for a German newspaper. It makes for a wonderful story, but I'm with Mr. Dash on this one.

this is so cool.

I believe accounts like this 10000%... call me a fool but that was a different era and I think all these reports have some truth in them.