Location
Lat 3° 25' 0S Long 151° 54' 0E Mesi is located at the center of
the southern coast of New Ireland. Also known as Mesi Number 1 or Mesi 1.
Japanese Tunnel
Built along the bay, this was a wartime tunnel with metal doors and a "laboratory" inside, likely a hospital
or air raid shelter. It is unknown what units built or military history this
area had.
During 2003, a story by locals surfaced about
a cave that had gold inside, reportedly left by retreating Japanese.
In late October 2003, the story exploded into a gold rush, supported
by
the
government,
police and
military
of PNG to located the gold. The expedition found no gold, but other
searches continue the search or to lay claim, certain some is there.
When nothing was found the media harshly reported the story as
'fools gold', and
some label
it
cargo cultism. The gold chase cost the PNG government tremendously, and was a major embarrassment when the story proved to be false. From a historical standpoint
it is very unlikely to be any gold stored or buried there, rather any
tunnel or cave would have been just a military fortification.
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Last Updated
March 20, 2022
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