New Jersey Scuba Diving

Sinking the ‘Captain Bart’

Tenacious tows the newly-christened "Captain Bart" into position

The State Police demolitions squad goes aboard to set the explosives

But the anchor chain gets stuck ...

... and the new reef drifts in the wind and tide for nearly three hours

Looking up at the pilot house from the tugboat just before jumping over

Diversion II serves as press boat

The sign says: Warning. No Smoking. No Open Lights. No Visitors.

The inside of the bridge. Looks like junk to me, but I'm sure it will all be quickly "salvaged" by wreck hounds

The view forward from the port-side bridge wing

Looking aft from the bow. Tugboat wake swirls in the distance

Explosives all set ... time for everyone to get off !

Tenacious makes one final pass, and ...

Ka-boom !!!

The concussion could be felt even at a distance, as pieces went flying overhead

Fires burn briefly after the explosion

The Budweiser banner didn't make it

At first the ship sinks very slowly ...

... but soon the tilt is unmistakable, as the stern plunges down

The metal hull creaks and groans as the ship sinks

Now the pilot house is completely under

Debris on the deck slides down into the water

The stern hits the bottom at 130 ft ...

... and the ship stands on end for several minutes ...

... digging down into the mud below ...

... before finally settling back down into the water

YOG-58 disappears forever into a boiling mass of bubbles ...

... and becomes the newest addition to the Shark River Artificial Reef

In theory, New Jersey has a stake in the DelJerseyLand reefs as well. But except for the Radford debacle, I don't think New Jersey has had or ever will have anything to do with them. They basically belong to Delaware, despite the name.

Susan Rose Sunk in February

The Susan Rose was re-sunk as an artificial reef in February. At present there still has been no public announcement. Here is the NJDEP contact form if you would like to inquire:

• https://dep.nj.gov/contact-form

New Jersey's Artificial Reef Program is headquartered at Nacote Creek, Port Republic (see chart above.) There they have offices, labs, dockage, and dedicated research vessels including the 42-foot Zephyrus, above. The program not only constructed artificial reefs for the benefit of both the environment and the public, but also conducted scientific research like this landmark study published in 2003:

• Marine Life Colonization of Experimental Reef Habitat (2003)
• Artificial Reef Program | Chart | List | Videos | News | Contact
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Sea Transporter YF-879

Type:

artificial reef, trawler, USA

Specs:

( 133 x 30 ft )

Built:

1945, American Bridge, Ambridge PA, as YF-879

Sponsor:

Cape May County Party & Charter Boat Association, Atlantic Cape Fisheries, Artificial Reef Association

Sunk:

Friday August 21, 1992 - Cape May Artificial Reef

GPS:

38°53.118' -74°40.190'

Depth:

70 ft

More: Sea Transporter YF-879 ...

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First Lady

Type:

artificial reef, clam dredge, USA

Built:

1944, Somerset Shipyard, Somerset MA USA as Rosalie D. Morse

Specs:

( 89 x 23 ft ) 153 GT

Sponsor:

M & P Boat Inc.

Sunk:

Wednesday July 3, 1985 - Atlantic City Artificial Reef

GPS:

39°13.703' -74°12.486'

Depth:

100 ft

More: First Lady ...

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concrete

Type:

4700 concrete slabs ( must be quite a pile )

Sponsor:

Delaware River Port Authority

Sunk:

1988 - Cape May Artificial Reef

More: concrete ...