|
Shetland
Wrecks around Shetland
January 1993 was one of the most stormy months of the 20th century in the Northern Atlantic: during one of the storms, on 5 January 1993, the oil tanker Braer became stranded on rocks off Shetland in a severe gale, causing one of the biggest oil spills ever and creating a major environmental disaster in an internationally known wildlife area. The ship was carrying almost double the amount of crude oil that was aboard the Exxon Valdez when it ran aground in Alaska in 1989. The Braer finally broke up completely during a subsequent storm on 10-11 January 1993 which established a record central low pressure of 916 hPa for the north Atlantic and which is the lowest recorded mean sea level pressure in the world outside of tropical storms and the centres of tornadoes.  The Brear I have heard that people have dived the Brear but more than that I don't know: maybe a project for the future..? The Sunniva plied her trade as a passenger, mail and cargo ship between Leith, Aberdeen and Lerwick until she hit the rocks at Mousa in fog on the morning of 10/4/1930. Swell started to break the vessel up so the passengers had to row the lifeboats round to the lee shore of Mousa in order to land: all escaped with their lives.  The Sunniva ashore at Mousa The St Sunniva is very broken with wreckage to be found in the rock gullies in 25m of water. This vessel also went ashore in dense fog, just round the corner of Mousa from the St Sunniva, on 7/4/1942. She lies in a depth of between 10-25m. The Jane was an iron steamship of 840grt that ran ashore on 19/07/1923 due to a navigation error.  The Jane The wreck now lies on a sandy seabed in 20m of water in an area of strong tide, keeping her clear of silt and covered in marine life. The E49 stuck a mine laid by UC-49 in Baltasound on 10 March 1917 and sank without survivors. The wreck now lies on a sandy seabed in around 30m of water. The Highcliffe ran aground on 6 Feb 1940, mistaking her position due to poor weather and visibility. She was on passage from Narvik to Immingham when she struck Forewick Holm, Papa Stour. Wreckage now extends from Forewick Stour down to the stern which now lies in 36m of water.  Oceanic I managed to dive this wreck myself on the 15/8/04 for the first time. Conditions were absolutely perfect, slack tides, no wind and good visibility.  Over the Oceanic She is very broken having struck the Hoevdi rocks but the pieces lie scattered in rocky gullys and amoungst the large boulders of the shoal. It is hard to get an idea of the ship from just one dive as the remains are scattered over a large area and dive time, despite the shallow depth, is limited to slack water. My advice for info on this wreck is to get hold of a copy of "The Other Titanic" by Simon Martin ISBN 0715377558, which is out of print and rarer than hen's teeth but a "must read". The Goodwill Merchant ran aground on the 18th Jan 1976 with no loss of life. she was on transit from Grangemouth to Lerwick with an assorted cargo, from cars to kit houses.  Goodwill Merchant The wreckage has been broken up by the Atlantic and now lies at he base of the clifs but behind a row of skerries. The gully runs for about 200m with bits of the ship the whole way along. The diving around Fair Isle is worthy of a book unto itself with wrecks ranging from the Spanish Armada ship the El Gran Grifon lost in 1588, to the Norsemans Bride, a trawler sunk in 1975. The vis is usually clear but the wrecks are often very broken due to their exposure to the elements. A week could be spent exploring Fair Isle itself. Lerwick The wrecks around Lerwick are listed on the next page page: click here.  The entrance to Lerwick Harbour Most, if not all of the photos on this page were taken by Ian Potten who can be found at www.ianpotten.btinternet.co.uk/. I would like to extend my thanks to him for their use and also reiterate that copyright remains with him so that any further reproduction would require his express permission.
Bob Anderson: bob@mvhalton.co.uk Tel:(01856) 851532
©Halton Charters
|
||||||||||
