Yesterday’s reef mitigation dive was productive but emotional. When we got to Coral Fang, even more polyps were showing signs of bleaching. Our efforts seem woefully inadequate based on what we’re facing. We didn’t have time to get to Carter’s Drop. We’re going to speak with NOAA officials about next steps.
I scan the crowd for Nathan first. He’s sitting quietly by Ms. Connor, who’s holding baby Christopher. He glances at me, raising his hand with a smile, then looks back down at his plate. Is he nervous? There have to be more than twenty people here today. He told me about his beach day last night when I called him. He must be shell-shocked by the rapid introductions. All these people are strangers to him. Strangers who expect different things and are here for different reasons.
I want to sit beside him so badly, but I’ll wait. I take a croissant and a bottle of water and squeeze into the only spot left—next to Garrett.
“We don’t know what’s down there,” Scott barks. “I’m not sending my team into what could be a death trap on a whim. You’re going to have to lay down some hard facts to sell me on why we need to expedite our schedule and change our plans.”
“And we haven’t even been in the Drop in over six months,” Jamie adds and points to the profile map of Carter’s Drop on the wall. The map is Scott’s latest survey of the Drop. It draws the distances traversed to date and lays out planned exploration routes based on sonar readings.
“Isn’t that what cave explorers do? Explore.” Garrett’s tone is snide and frustrated. Scott raises his hand to caution Jamie not to respond.
“I, for one, am itching to get in there,” Sid quips, rubbing her hands together.
Scott shoots her a stern look. “Yeah, well, you’re not going anywhere unexplored. Main line travel only, Miss Diva.”
“Okey dokey, boss. You’ve told me that a few times. I’ve got good ears. My crew will stay on the lines.”
“I don’t see why you can’t wait until the experts map the area before you try to film it. You’re only going to get in their way,” Garrett says. He’s still trying to keep her out of the caves.
“She’s okay if she stays on the main lines.” Scott smiles at Sid. “One of us will supervise the film crew on each dive. We’ll rotate so we don’t get bored.”
She gives him the OK sign and snickers.
Scott turns back to Finn. “We can re-prioritize traverse however we need. What I don’t like is the rush. Rushing gets people killed.”
Hearing the danger spoken aloud makes this real. These people are my family. I don’t think I’ll survive if I lose anyone else.
Finn’s calm voice cuts in. “Scott, understandably, you have concerns.” He walks over to the map like a professor about to lecture the class. “Let me get us all briefed on the science, then we can jump into logistics and the dive plan. Before I begin…” He turns to me. “Crystal, do you want to summarize the current coastal impacts so we have a reading of what’s at stake?”
I pick up my notes. Nathan looks at me intently from across the table. His gaze makes me burn up, and it’s hard to think for a moment. I clear my throat. “We’re running pH/salinity tests daily now, and the trends are grim. We don’t have much time. The water temperature in those areas is already consistentlymeasuring over eighty-six degrees. That’s enough to cause bleaching, and if it’s sustained or increases, it will cause death. It’s already dying.”
I stop and take a breath, trying to hold in my tears.
“That’s bad.” Scott’s eyes and voice soften. “But what are we supposed to do about it? Do we even know what we’re looking for?”
“All we can do is try to buy the coral time,” I continue. “We’re focused on those tactics right now. Restricting aquatic activity near the reef, deploying shade cloths, cooling pumps, and feeding lamps. And we’ll continue to monitor impacts.” I turn to Finn. “What we need is to find out what’s actually causing the heating and stop it.”
Finn nods and jumps back in. “Back to the question about what we’ve learned. My team has been running dozens of surveys and tests over the last couple of days.” He pushes up his glasses. “We’ve identified the hot zones in the caves. And Nathan’s stone is giving us valuable data about the material in those areas.”
Nathan jerks his head toward Finn at the mention of his name.
“I have theories… but let’s not get ahead of ourselves.”
“How hot is the stone right now?” I ask.
“Two hundred and sixty degrees.”
Scott stands. “We can’t swim in water that hot.”
“Oh no,” Finn says quickly. “The main flow won’t be that hot. Warmer, yes, but the heat drops off fast once you’re away from the source. Think of geothermal vents. The hot water is localized, then it mixes.” He rubs the bridge of his nose before continuing. “We’ll use temperature probes and, of course, everyone needs to avoid the rocky walls.”
“Who else knows about this?” Scott asks.
“I’ve kept the findings of the stone and the temperatures to a small group of scientists I trust, and now all of you. We haven’t notified outsiders yet. But we’re in contact with local NOAA and Coast Guard officials.” He looks in my direction. “And the mayor’s office, of course.”
“How long before the Feds show up and this place turns into a shitstorm?” Scott asks.
“Two weeks at most.”
