The Plank
Day 1: Caribbean
Day 2: Charleston
Day 3: Carolina Coast
Day 4: Beaufort
Day 5: Bath
Day 6: Ocracoke

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How to safeguard the shipwreck site against modern day pirates

That's the problem facing divers who hope to research a shipwreck they believe belonged to Blackbeard.

Originally, divers had hoped to return to the site at Beaufort Inlet earlier this year.

"I thought that was risky," says Mike Daniel, president of Maritime Research Institute, a non-profit organization involved in the research and excavation of the site. "We had the problem with a lot of tourists. Things didn't really come together from a security standpoint."

When diving does begin, security will be tight. Because the wreck is so close to shore, the location will become obvious once work begins.

"One of the reasons we have delayed returning to the site is our concern for security," says Richard Lawerence, an underwater archaeologist with the state.

State officials want to establish a sophisticated monitoring system that will include a combination of video, radar and acoustic monitoring.

"There is some concern about getting too specific about the way the system works," Lawerence says. "For us, this is a one of a kind. We haven't tried to do this at any (other) shipwreck sites."

Lawrence says a similar system is being used to keep an eye on the Confederate submarine Hunley, which went down off Charleston, S.C.

"Beyond that," Lawerence says, "I don't know any instance where people have tried to keep a site under 24 hour observation."

State officials say they already have some security at the site, but would not elaborate on it.