Rubber Ducks Go Swimming

     (SFX: storm noises)

     THE STORM WAS ROUGH, THE SEAS WERE HIGH, AND THE TANKER GOT TOSSED
AROUND AS IT CROSSED THE PACIFIC OCEAN.  SUDDENLY, 12 LARGE CONTAINERS OF
PRECIOUS CARGO SWEPT OVERBOARD.  TWENTY-NINE THOUSAND RUBBER TOYS
FLIPPED INTO THE SEA, (SFX: Ernie's rubber duckie song) SET FREE TO RIDE THE WAVES
AROUND THE WORLD. 

     Ebbesmeyer: "They're nice little critters, they're green frogs, little blue turtles, red beavers and
yellow ducks. they're made to float in the bathtub." 
     OCEANOGRAPHER CURTIS EBBESMEYER SAYS THIS TIME THE TOYS GOT A MUCH
TOUGHER RIDE--SOME SAILED OVER TO JAPAN, OTHERS TO ALASKA, AND ELSEWHERE
ALONG AMERICA'S WEST COAST.  EBBESMEYER, ALONG WITH HIS COLLEAGUE JAMES
INGRAHAM HAVE BEEN RECORDING WHERE THE LITTLE TOYS FINALLY HIT THE SHORE
IN AN EFFORT TO TRACK THEIR PATH AND, THEREFORE, THE OCEAN CURRENTS IN THE
PACIFIC. 

     Ebbesmeyer: "They fell overboard about January 10th, 1992, and about Thanksgiving of 92, they
started showing up at Sitka, Alaska and beachcombers were finding them by the hundreds and putting
them in their hottubs and having all kinds of fun with them." 
      EBBESMEYER SAYS THAT EVERY WEEK HE HEARS FROM PEOPLE WHO'VE SPOTTED
ANOTHER YELLOW DUCK OR GREEN FROG LYING ON THE BEACH, AND BY COMBINING
THAT INFORMATION WITH COMPUTER MODELS, HE AND JIM INGRAHAM MAPPED OUT
THE TOYS PATH.  THE TOYS ARE HEADING UP INTO THE BERING SEA--WHICH ISN'T GOOD
NEWS SINCE IT MEANS THAT THE TOYS OR OTHER PLASTIC DEBRIS THAT GETS DUMPED
INTO THE PACIFIC COULD END UP TRAPPED IN THE ARCTIC OCEAN. SUCH INFORMATION
ABOUT THE CURRENTS SHOULD HELP US CONTAIN OTHER--POSSIBLY MORE
DANGEROUS--SPILLS IN THE FUTURE. 
     IF YOU GO TO THE BEACH ON VACATION AND FIND ONEOF THESE TRAVELLING
TOYS, HE WANTS TO HEAR FROM YOU.  SEND A PHOTOGRAPH OF THE TOY TO: CURTIS
EBBESMEYER, EVANS HAMILTON, INC. 731 NORTH NORTHLAKE WAY, SEATTLE, WA,
98103.