Man Dives Under Blue Whale In Catoosa To Help Find Missing Items

Thousands of people visit the Blue Whale in Catoosa every year, and unfortunately sometimes they drop something into the water.

That happened to a family in Kansas City, and they called a local diver to help them get it back.

Patrick Willoughby loves helping people find things they thought were lost forever.

"It's a good feeling inside, knowing I can do my little part to help somebody. It makes me feel like I'm a part of something bigger than myself,” he said.

That's one of the reasons he started diving as the OK Diver, helping people in Green Country find things they dropped in the murky water.

“It's not clear whatsoever, as soon as the bottom gets touched it silts out, absolutely no visibility, you can't see your hand when it's in front of your face when it's touching your mask,” he said.

He said someone from Kansas City called him a couple of months ago and said they lost something when they were visiting the Blue Whale.

He called the city and they gave him the all-clear. So he suited up and went under.

"We'll never know until we get down there, it's just as new to me as it is to everyone else. We don't know what's down there and we're going to find out together,” he said.

Once he was under, it wasn't long before he started finding all sorts of things.

First, a tiny toy shark, then a couple of fishing poles, some glasses, and then the treasured prize -- a cell phone.

He said he was told there were pictures on the phone the owners couldn't replace. He now gets to give those cherished pictures and memories back to them.

"Reuniting them with their lost stuff that they thought was lost forever, so that was a really good feeling,” he said.

While he was under water, he also inspected the bottom of the blue whale to make sure it was in great shape.

You can find Patrick on Facebook and YouTube at OK Diver.