Missing Person Commentary

By: Shane Lambert Updated: July 2nd, 2023 A mystery has endured for over 40 years for those that knew  Ralph Malaiakini, 27, Scott Moorman, 27, Benjamin Kalama, 38, Patrick Woessner, 26, and Peter Hanchett, 31. Those five sailors left a port near Hana, Hawaii on February 11th, 1979 and what exactly happened to them after that remains a mystery.  The five sailors set sail into the Pacific Ocean from Hana on a vessel known as the Sarah Joe, a 17-f oot motor-powered boat .   According to the original reporting from Hawaii in 1979, there were messages of distress from the boat the day it disappeared. The sailors indicated that they were having engine trouble early in the evening (Honolulu Star-Bulletin Feb 12, 1979).  Unfortunately, gale winds picked up, the men couldn't be reached when they indicated that they were in distress, and subsequent rescue attempts failed. This was despite the use of what appeared to be an intelligent search method over water. In the Februa

By: Shane Lambert I had a look at the case of Ruth Marie Severance tonight (may be called Ruth Marie Jones-Severance). She's someone that has been missing since December 11th, 1982 from Houston, Texas. Her missing-person profile at NamUs does not offer a ton of information. However, here are the details provided: 24 years old as of December 11th, 1982 Only 4'10" 110 lbs White/Caucasian Google Map's last-known location: 29°45'37.5"N 95°22'11.3"W Blond/strawberry hair Hazel eyes Clothing: green and white jacket, navy-blue shirt, and blue jeans Regarding the circumstances of her disappearance, the NamUs profile leaves a lot to be desired. I had a look through an online newspaper database in search of details for her case for Websleuths and others interested in this case. Here is a summary of what I found (from Feb 9th, 1983 Victoria Advocate). The last person to see her was her ex-husband The ex-husband was named Pete Severance,