Michael Horvath

The Art of :

As the need for fuel for the Texas Navy grew, the Navy developed a top secret offshore platform that could drill in water over 100,000 feet deep. In addition, the Texas Navy needed a deep ocean salvage vessel that could secretly recover any damaged ships in that same depth of water while passing off as a non-descript offshore rig. The result was the Tonkowa which was considered a feat of engineering that was unrivaled for it’s time. Unfortunately, the Tonkawa had some unknown engineering flaws. As a result, it suffered severe damage when it was caught in a derecho as it was on station about 100 miles offshore. As it was being towed back to port for necessary repairs, it was caught in the treacherous Hurricane Lyss and ended up capsizing just miles from port and the Navy considered it too costly given the amount of damage sustained to recover it and left it where it still sits today.

Photography by: Killy Photography

T.M.S. Tonkowa

22" x 36" x 22"

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