A Greek mystic named George Strathakis made his fateful trip over the Horseshoe Falls on July 5, 1930. He went over the falls in a 2000 lbs. oak barrel he had fashioned himself. Strathakis had the presence of mind to include a three hour oxygen supply in his barrel. However, he could not have anticipated that his barrel would be trapped for over 22 hours behind the cataract, and when the barrel was finally recovered officials pronounced George Strathakis dead of suffocation at the age of 46. He had taken his pet turtle “Sonny Boy” with him in the barrel and the turtle survived the perilous journey.
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