Sinking ships for wreck diving sites


Sinking ships for wreck diving sites is the practice of scuttling old ships to produce artificial reefs suitable for wreck diving, to benefit from commercial revenues from recreational diving of the shipwreck, or to produce a diver training site.
To avoid undesirable ecological impact, and to maximise utility, the vessel should be selected and prepared, and the site chosen, with due consideration to the local environment.

Preparation

To prepare a hulk for sinking as a wreck site, several things must be done to make it safe for the marine environment and divers. To protect the environment, the ship is purged of all oils, hydraulic fluids, and dangerous chemicals such as PCBs. Much of the superstructure may be removed to prevent the hazard of it eventually caving in from corrosion. Similarly, the interior of the ship is gutted of components that corrode quickly, and would be dangerous to divers if they came loose. The ship is thoroughly cleaned, often with the help of volunteers interested in diving. A significant part of the cost of preparing and sinking the ship may be recovered from scrapping the contents of the ship, including valuable materials such as copper wiring. The hulk's suitability as a diving site may be enhanced by cutting openings in its hull and interior bulkheads, and removing doors and hatch covers to allow divers access at reduced risk.

Choice of site

Several factors influence the choice of site for recreational diving purposes, and these should take into consideration the possibly conflicting economic and ecological considerations.
The preparation phase usually removes a significant amount of weight, so the ship floats higher in the water than normal. This may make it necessary to stabilise the vessel by filling some compartments with water as makeshift ballast tanks to prevent excessive rolling in port or during towing. The ship is towed to the sinking location, usually in waters shallow enough to allow access by a large number of divers, but deep enough to be relatively unaffected by surface weather conditions. The ship is usually scuttled using shaped explosives, in a controlled demolition. The holes may be blown so that the heavier engine room and stern floods first, then the rest of the hull. The aim is to sink the ship in an upright position.

Reception

The sinking of ships as recreational dive sites can provide wreck diving opportunities where they previously did not exist, and can provide wrecks which are particularly suitable for penetration by less skilled and experienced divers, when they have been prepared for the purpose by removing potential hazards and contents which would contaminate the site or region. However some divers see them as artificial, less interesting and less challenging, and prefer to explore the relatively unknown or mysterious surroundings of historic and significant wrecks which occurred outside of planned scuttling events, considering them to be more authentic. Scuttling programs may relieve more culturally significant wreckage from overexploitation, particularly incidental damage by less competent divers, but do not remove the threat of illegal intentional damage by removal of artifacts by wreck-robbers, who will target wrecks where there are more likely to be artifacts worth stealing.

List of ships sunk for wreck diving

YearVessel NameLocationCountry/territory
2018QueenslandAustralia
2017Fishing Trawler, Gal'OzHertzliya, IsraelIsrael
2017Cape May, New JerseyUnited States
2016VisKamenjak, IstraCroatia
2016General Pereira D´Eça F477Porto Santo, MadeiraPortugal
2015ARM Uribe Rosarito Beach, Baja CaliforniaMexico
2015 Checheng Township, PingtungTaiwan
2015British ColumbiaCanada
2014MV Ærøsund South Fionan SeaDenmark
2014HTMS Kledkaeo Phi Phi IslandsThailand
2013Tug No. 2SliemaMalta
2013T11 Coastal Patrol ShipKo ChangThailand
2013NRP Almeida Carvalho AlgarvePortugal
2013NRP Hermenegildo Capelo AlgarvePortugal
2012HTMS Chang, formerly Ko ChangThailand
2012NRP Zambeze AlgarvePortugal
2012NRP Oliveira e Carmo AlgarvePortugal
2012HTMS Phetra Ko Man NokThailand
2012HTMS Mataphon Ko LarnThailand
2012Lee County, FloridaUnited States
2011Cape May, New JerseyUnited States
2011HTMS Sattakut Koh TaoThailand
2011HTMS Prab ChumphonThailand
2011Avoca Beach, New South WalesAustralia
2011West Bay, Grand CaymanCayman Islands
2009Barwon Heads, VictoriaAustralia
2009CominoMalta
2009Key West, FloridaUnited States
2007Delaware BayUnited States
2007Bay of IslandsNew Zealand
2007USTS Texas ClipperSouth Padre Island, TexasUnited States
2007ĊirkewwaMalta
2006GozoMalta
2006GozoMalta
2006HTMS Kut PattayaThailand
2006FloridaUnited States
2006Xihwu Boeing 737British ColumbiaCanada
2005WellingtonNew Zealand
2005Mooloolaba, QueenslandAustralia
2004Hebat AllahHurghada, Red SeaEgypt
2004Morehead City, North CarolinaUnited States
2004Whitsand Bay, CornwallUnited Kingdom
2003MV Camia 2Boracay islandAklan
2003CS Charles L BrownSint EustatiusLeeward Islands
2003QuebecCanada
2003Chaikou, Green IslandTaiwan
2003HTMS Khram Ko PhaiThailand
2002MV DaniaMombasaKenya
2002FloridaUnited States
2002Yankalilla Bay, South AustraliaAustralia
2001Albany, Western AustraliaAustralia
2001British ColumbiaCanada
2001VeracruzMexico
2000TutukakaNew Zealand
2000Puerto MoralesMexico
2000HaiTzuKuo, XiaoliuqiuTaiwan
2000San Diego, CaliforniaUnited States
2000StanegarthStoney CoveUnited Kingdom
1999QawraMalta
1999CozumelMexico
1999Tutukaka HeadsNew Zealand
1999GozoMalta
1998Looe Key, FloridaUnited States
1998Um El FaroudQrendiMalta
1998MarsaskalaMalta
1998Tug No. 10MarsaskalaMalta
1997British ColumbiaCanada
1997Dunsborough, Western AustraliaAustralia
1996British ColumbiaCanada
1996MV Captain Keith Tibbetts Cayman BracCayman Islands
1996Inganess BayBritish Virgin Islands
1995British ColumbiaCanada
1995MV Jean EscutiaPuerto MorelosMexico
1994INS SufaEilat, IsraelIsrael
1994Rottnest IslandAustralia
1994SAS Pietermaritzburg, formerly Miller's Point, Western CapeSouth Africa
1994Nova ScotiaCanada
1992British ColumbiaCanada
1992North CarolinaUnited States
1992ĊirkewwaMalta
1991New JerseyUnited States
1991–2001"Wreck Alley" – Marie L, Pat and BeataBritish Virgin Islands
1991MV G.B. ChurchBritish ColumbiaCanada
1990FontaoDurbanSouth Africa
1990USCG HollyhockFloridaUnited States
1990T-BargeDurbanSouth Africa
1990Destin, FloridaUnited States
1990Morehead City, North CarolinaUnited States
1989YO-257Oahu, HawaiiUnited States
1989Ocean City, MarylandUnited States
1989Port St. Lucie, FloridaUnited States
1988North CarolinaUnited States
1988Stuart, FloridaUnited States
1988VirginiaUnited States
1988Myrtle Beach, South CarolinaUnited States
1987–2000Wreck AlleySan Diego, CaliforniaUnited States
1987FloridaUnited States
1987FloridaUnited States
1987Matauri BayNew Zealand
1987Panama City, FloridaUnited States
1987Gulf of MexicoUnited States
1985FloridaUnited States
1983Key West, FloridaUnited States
1982Grand Bahama IslandBahamas
1982Waianae, HawaiiUnited States
1980Daytona Beach, FloridaUnited States
1980Isla MujeresMexico
1980Oro VerdeCayman Islands
1978North CarolinaUnited States
1975Wachapreague, VirginiaUnited States
1974SS Theodore ParkerNorth CarolinaUnited States
1972Key West, FloridaUnited States
1970Wrightsville Beach, North CarolinaUnited States
1970Glen StrathallenPlymouth SoundUnited Kingdom
1968Palm Beach, FloridaUnited States
1944Jun'yō MaruSamalona Island, South SulawesiIndonesia
1942/1984ITS ScirèHaifa, IsraelIsrael
1942USAT LibertyTulambenBali