Tugboat will be scuttled and become dive wreck
A disused tugboat will be scuttled in the middle of Exiles bay in Sliema to serve as a diving wreck. The vessel will lie about 20 metres below the surface on a stretch of sand and access would mainly be from the shore. The request to scuttle Tug 2 – a...
A disused tugboat will be scuttled in the middle of Exiles bay in Sliema to serve as a diving wreck.
The vessel will lie about 20 metres below the surface on a stretch of sand and access would mainly be from the shore.
The request to scuttle Tug 2 – a 30-metre long, 9.5-metre high vessel – was made by the Professional Diving Schools Association and was sanctioned by the planning authority yesterday.
The area was chosen because there are no other vessels there. The nearest are the HMS Maori, off Valletta, and the X127 water lighter, off Manoel Island.
The Maori is slowly disintegrating and future access to the X127 is uncertain because of the ongoing development on Manoel Island.
Tug 2 will be submerged at a point 252 metres off St Julian’s and 380 metres off the Portomaso breakwater, about 500 metres to the southeast of Merkanti Reef.
The tugboat has been docked at Bezzina Shipyards for 12 years and recently underwent cleaning and preparation – including the removal of asbestos.