Hundreds of PlayStation Portables Wash Ashore on Huntington Beach in California
“First there was one, then there was a dozen. Now there has been a couple hundred,” explains Donna Delopolis a beach comber who makes a living combing southern California beaches for lost change, keys, and toys.
Donna is one of a couple hundred people who have reported finding still-in-the-package PSPs that are suddenly washing ashore. More than 50 have been found at Huntington Beach alone. The game consoles are all special editions that were sold in a water and air-tight clear plastic shell destined for store shelves in the United States.
“At first no one knew where the game systems were coming from, but then this scientist came down here and said he knew exactly where they originated from,” continues Donna as she pans for treasure near the shoreline.
The scientist Donna is referring to is Oceanographer Dr. Anthony Phish – a specialist who studies ocean currents. The Gaming Free Press spoke with Dr. Phish at his Malibu home:
“The packages came from a Hong Kong ocean freighter. A shipping container to be exact that got washed overboard in 2008.”
Dr. Phish shared the name of the ocean freighter with us, but due to pending insurance litigation we are unable to share the name or details of the ship.
When asked for more clarity Dr. Phish explained to us that these shipping accidents happen pretty frequently:
“All the time. Many years ago a ship lost its load of rubber bath toys in the pacific. Some of the toys washed up as far away as Australia and the United Kingdom. Some debris sinks, some disintegrated in the salty ocean water, and some make the journey to land, sometimes thousands of miles away from where they started.”
Although the systems look as new as the day they were packaged we were curious if they still worked. Donna opened a package in front of the Gaming Free Press and after charging the battery for about twenty minutes the system turned on and seemed to function as normal.
Before heading to your local beach to search of lost game consoles make sure you’re aware of the rules and laws. Different beaches prohibit the removal of debris lost at sea.
