Ghostly Plastic Ducks, Adrift at Sea

Residents of the western UK and Irish coasts have been warned to expect an invasion by a vast flotilla of ghostly, immortal albino plastic ducks, according to reports.

The tale of the floating, whitened bird-simulacra migration is a strange one, dating back many years. It seems that the plastic bathtime companions were originally made in China. They were on their way to America in 1992 when a terrible storm struck their vessel in mid-Pacific, and shipping containers holding 30,000 of the hapless playthings were washed overboard.

(...)and the
ducks have become collector’s items, changing hands for £500.

Ebbesmeyer's next serendipitous study of the ocean currents in the North Pacific came in late 1992 when a large number of brightly coloured bathtub toys were reported on the beaches near Sitka, Alaska. These toys had been part of a shipment of containers headed from Hong Kong to Tacoma, Washington. In January, 1992, the container ship carrying the toys among its cargo encountered severe storm conditions near the International Date Line (44.7°N, 178.1°E). Twelve containers went overboard as the ship rolled about 40 degrees in the heavy seas. One of these 20-metre containers held a shipment of 29,000 bathtub toys.