steaming along the western coast until July 1937. In addition she returned to Panama several times for exercises and fleet problems, operated in Hawaiian waters and around the Aleutian Islands. Grounding in the Bahamas In July 1937, Omaha was serving as flagship of the Special Service Squadron when she was relieved by the year old gunboat . On 19 July, Omaha became grounded on a reef at Castle Island, Bahamas, near . During the investigation it was stated that, "she quickly and evenly decelerated as the bottom engaged the smooth reef." The grounding had occurred during high tide, which made dislodging the cruiser more difficult. After removing as much as possible in an attempt to lighten the ship the salvagers employed tugs to pull on Omaha while destroyers circled around them to create waves. After ten days of attempts, on 29 July, Omaha was finally floated free. She got underway the following day for the Norfolk Navy Yard, Portsmouth, Virginia, where she underwent repairs. A general court martial, held on 11 October 1937, found that Captain Howard B. Mecleary, Omahas commanding officer at the time of the grounding, was guilty of negligence "resulting in the stranding of the vessel", he was sentenced to the loss of 25 numbers on the captain's list. On 14 February 1938, Omaha got underway after having the damage to her hull repaired, with Captain Wallace L. Lind, as her new commanding officer. She conducted sea trials while en route to Guantánamo. Germany invades Poland Omaha set sail for Gibraltar on 30 March 1938, for service in the Mediterranean Sea. Arriving in Marseille, France, 27 April 1938, she would remain in the Mediterranean for over a year, until 2 May 1939. She visited Villefranche-sur-Mer, and Menton, France, during her time before departing from Malta, for her return to the US and an extensive overhaul from 17 June until October 1939. It was during this time that, on 1 September 1939, Germany invaded Poland, starting what would become World War II. Omaha operated in the Caribbean after her overhaul conducting gunnery and tactical exercise from the end of October until 6 December 1939, when she arrived at Havana. She had been tasked with the duty of transporting the body of J. Butler Wright, the US Ambassador to Cuba, who had died 4 December, to Washington, D.C. Upon completion, Omaha reported to Naval Operating Base (NOB), staying there