A hard hat from the Maine Department of Transportation went on an around-the-world journey, traveling to Norway.
A Facebook post by MaineDOT shared a photo of a man wearing a white construction hat with “MaineDOT” on the front, that was covered in dirt and algae.
The man who found the hat, Sigbjorn Eide, told WCSH that he was out for a walk collecting trash with his mother in Trondheim, Norway, when he saw the hat sitting on seaweed. He said he initially thought it could be from somewhere local, but then “I saw the American flag on it. When I Googled it I found [the Maine DOT] at once. I was astonished and impressed by the long voyage the small helmet had taken,” WSCH reported.
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The distance from Maine to Norway is approximately 3,300 miles by sea, but Damian Veilleux, a spokesperson for MaineDOT, told WSCH the hat likely travelled 8,000 miles along the gulf stream to get to its destination. “Honestly, this was kind of a sobering thing,” Veilleux told WSCH. “It’s a fun story, but at the same time it shows just how interconnected our ecosystems are with the oceans and the climate. You know, a piece of plastic traveling 8,000 miles through the ocean to end up in another country just shows how interconnected this world really is.”
Eide cleaned the hat and sent updated pictures to MaineDOT, which show it looking as good as new. A spokesperson for MaineDOT told WMTW that equipment like helmets is not tracked, so there’s no way to know whose hat it was, and Eide is welcome to keep it.
Sigbjorn Eide sent this photo to MaineDOT showing the hat once it was cleaned.
MaineDOT told WSCH it plans to send Eide some special goodies from Maine to have in addition to the hat.
The hat, as it was found, with the MaineDOT logo visible.
The hat, as it was found, covered in dirt and seaweed.
Sigbjorn Eide, the man who found the hard hat, wears it in Norway.
The hard hat, cleaned, displaying the MaineDOT logo on the front.
The hat, cleaned, interior.
The hat, cleaned, showing the American flag on the back.
