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Deenihan attends premiere of 'Dark Secrets of the Lusitania' in Cork

Jimmy Deenihan TD, Minister for Arts Heritage and the Gaeltacht will attend the Premier of the Discovery Channel, National Geographic documentary 'Dark Secrets of the Lusitania' in the Port of Cork Company Headquarters, Custom House, Cork, tonight (Friday 14th September, 2012).

The sinking of the Lusitania on May 7th 1915 was the key event that brought America into World War I. While thousands of Irish lost their lives in that conflict the number could have been lot higher only for American support at a critical juncture. Since 1995 the wreck has been protected by an Underwater Heritage Order under the National Monuments Acts because of its "historical, archaeological or artistic importance". Its status as a war grave is also a primary reason for the legal protection given to it by the Irish authorities.

A number of dives to the wreck of the Lusitania were undertaken in the first two weeks of August 2011 by the film Company,

Bowler Bill Entertainment, who were commissioned by National Geographic to make a documentary about the sinking. The project was carried out in partnership with Mr. Gregg Bemis, owner of the Lusitania, who was given a five year licence by the National Monuments Service in 2007 to undertake a forensic examination of the wreck. Mr Bemis' longstanding objective has been to establish exactly what happened in the immediate aftermath of the ship being torpedoed and the likely cause of a reported second explosion.

As well as focussing on the likely cause of the second explosion, the documentary will reveal new and never before seen parts of the interior of what is possibly the most iconic and historic wreck lying in Irish waters.

Mr Bemis will also be in Cork for the Premier of the documentary and he is scheduled to meet the Minister and his officials during his visit. The Minister said that his Department would be "working closely with Mr Bemis with a view to developing streamlined procedures for any further investigations he may undertake in pursuit of his research objectives".

Mr Bemis is a successful American business man, chair of the Ocean Corporation, one of the leading schools for commercial divers and former chair of Ocean Engineering, makers of ROVs and submersibles. He has owned the wreck of the Lusitania since 1968 and has been trying to solve the mystery surrounding its rapid sinking after the torpedo struck ever since.

The Minister said he was "delighted" to have the opportunity to meet Mr Bemis again. "We had very positive discussions when he was here last year about the the artefacts he has already recovered being put on display in Irish museums". The Minister said he hoped to make further progress with Mr Bemis on this issue and that he was confident agreement could also be reached on arrangements for Mr Bemis' plans for further research and investigation of the wreck.