The Bay Area Divers 31st consecutive Shipwrecks and Scuba symposium will be held November 8, 2014 at the Sawmill Creek Resort in Huron, Ohio. If you are interested in World War II or shipwrecks this is the place to be!  Get your tickets early since this event consistently sells out. For complete event and speaker information you can visit the Shipwreck and Scuba site.  But here are the Evening Keynote speakers, just to whet your appetite. Ralph Wilbanks, Marine Archaeologist and shipwreck hunter: “Aftermath on the bottom – The Normandy Invasion”. Ralph Wilbanks is probably best known for discovering the Confederate Submarine H.L. Hunley. However, this extraordinary accomplishment pales when viewed against the fullness of this singular individuals life.  Ralph is the principle investigator and owner of Diversified Wilbanks Inc., and has over 35 years of experience in underwater archaeology.  He has worked all over the world in search of historys lost maritime treasures and is an advisory board member of Clive Cusslers  NUMA (National Underwater and Marine Agency). When he is not working on a NUMA assignment or traveling the world for many other organizations, he can be found towing his boat RV Divercity as far as the Great Lakes on personal search projects.  This past year he was involved in charting the lost ships and equipment off the WWII invasion coasts of Normandy. This extensive exploration discovered over 200 wrecks; including ships, tanks, and personnel carriers.Besides all that, Ralph is one heck of a story teller. Joe Hoyt, NOAA Marine Archaeologist: “Hitlers Secret Attack on America” One of Bay Area Divers own, Joe Hoyt has gone on to fame with NOAA’s National Geographic special, Hitler’s Secret Attack on America. Joe will share the secrets of how, for the first time in history, National Geographic Channel and NOAA’s (National Ocianic and  Atmospheric Administration)  group of scientists searched the ocean floor for a series of shipwrecks many Americans never heard about. Everyone knows that on December 7, 1941, the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor. But what most don’t know is just days later, Hitler sent his own force to devastate the East Coast. On December 19, the German Naval War Staff sent three U-boats to American waters. It was an assault so deadly, it was covered up by the U.S. government.