Qanon members believe there are multiple prison barges being sent to Guantanamo Bay, that will hold prisoners from the mass arrests they believe are imminent. This is an explanation of how that claim got started, and what the facts of the situation are.
Around Dec. 11, 2018 a post was made on 8chan from a person who had two photos of what they believed to be a prison barge, that was headed to Guantanamo bay.
Because 8chan isn't archived, it's difficult to pinpoint the source. Pictures and info got mixed up by the time it went viral, but we can construct a rough timeline.
I believe this to be the original text/photos of the 8chan post. Pictures were swapped as time went on, it isn't the 8chan screenshot, and it's not what went viral, but this is undoubtedly the original presentation.
Someone on 8chan started a new thread, but used a photo of a different but similarly constructed ship for the first post:
Some people thought all 3 photos were of the same ship, while others thought it was two separate ships. Eventually the incorrect picture merged with one of the originals, and this is the tweet that went viral.
(Note the edit of the first picture, which crops out the blue sections. Could be completely unintentional, but it made them look much more similar.)
I'll spare the rest of the posts around this time, but suffice it to say there were MANY people working to obtain more information about the situation... using marine trackers, speculating that they shut the transponders off, pointing to unmarked ships as possibilities... all that stuff.
Ok, on to the viral picture... the first thing is that the ship on the left is the Vernon C. Bain Correctional Center, which is permanently parked in NYC. The photo used in the viral tweet is from a 2012 article about the ship. (Compare shadows to confirm.)
This ship is huge, and presumably full of prisoners. It obviously hasn't left its home port, otherwise there would be tons of people talking about it. If anyone is still doubtful, call someone local and have them step outside and look at it... you cant miss it.
Now for the other ship. First of all, it can be confirmed that this is the Morehead N.C. port, with satellite imagery.
At this point I began researching ships of this type, in hopes of identifying the one in the picture.
I learned that ships like this are commonly referred to as 'berthing barges/ships' or 'barracks barges/ships'. They are generally used in areas where housing is needed quickly (weather emergencies), or for sailors to live in while their ship is undergoing maintenance.
I sifted through many searches trying to find a match, and after learning that the Navy has around 60 of these types of ships, I started looking there.
Thanks to the unique metal roof on one end of the ship, eventually I was able to find a match.
This is a US Navy barracks ship identified as APL-66. This ship has accommodations for 250 personnel, and it's home port is the Norfolk Naval Shipyard, in Portsmouth, Va.
While the NYC prison barge has since been identified, and confirmed at its home port in NYC, I'm not sure that anyone has previously identified the second ship. Regardless, we now have all the facts about the picture that went viral.
The person that took the picture incorrectly thought he was looking at the prison barge from NYC when he saw APL-66 in NC. His report caused others to incorrectly associate the NYC prison barge with the somewhat similar looking Navy barracks ship.
Now we wade into the speculation waters, pun intended.
Why was this ship docked in Morehead NC? Was it being repaired? Routine naval assignment? Public exhibition? On it's way back to Norfolk? Headed to other locations, possibly Guantanamo Bay? That I can't answer.
I have made a few attempts to get some information from Navy members, but haven't heard anything as of yet. If I do, I will update the article, and if anyone has information, please forward it to me... either in a comment below, or at wmerthon@mail.com.
One thing we can say for sure, is that it is not a prison barge... it is a temporary barracks for military personnel.
It also isn't that unusual for it to be out of it's home port, as these types of ships are designed to be shuttled around by the Navy as needed.
Remember that there is a permanent Naval base at Guantanamo, with many facilities that are in poor conditions. I would assume that if this ship is headed there, it will be used to temporarily support the military personnel on the base.
Many people aren't aware that the Naval base at Guantanamo Bay is fairly substantial, with around 6000 people living there. Here is a picture that shows just how large the main base is, compared to the detention center.
The detention center utilizes around 1800 personnel. Those assigned to the detention center usually do 9 month deployments, and are often from the National Guard. That means that if you hear a rumor of a National Guard (or active duty) unit being activated and sent to Guantanamo, it's likely just a routine deployment.
Personally I do not believe the Navy would waste such a valuable asset just to hold a few hundred prisoners, especially when they could easily throw up tents that could hold many more than that.
Regardless, I would caution people to use restraint before speculating too much about this right now. Remember, there is no proof that the ship isn't currently in it's home port, or at a location other than Cuba.
As observed above, when people start speaking with confidence about things they are not knowledgeable about, it generally results in confusion and misinformation... which doesn't help any particular cause.
Here is a brief explanation added to the original tweet, that can be used to easily share the correct information:
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