What quickly became an internet sensation just might become an underwater site.
The Hephaestus, the tanker that was shipwrecked along the coast of Qawra during a 2018 storm in February could be getting a new lease on life. The 60m tanker ran aground last year and may be turned into a diving attraction in Gozo.
During the feast of St Paul’s Shipwreck, a heavy storm resulted in the tanker being washed up on shore. It remained there for the following six months before it was towed to Cassar Ship Repair yard in Marsa. However, there are scuttling plans for the 885-tonne vessel that will see it off the coast of the Gozitan town of Qala, but this time as an underwater attraction.
There are various tankers, ships and vessels that have likewise been sunk across our coasts as diving attractions, and this will add to the list. Emi Farrugia, an experienced wreck-diver and underwater filmmaker told Times of Malta that the area proposed is awaiting proper surveying before sinking the ship. “We hope to create a substantial diving experience,” he says.
If the proposal to sink the Hephaestus goes through, it won’t be far from neighbouring sunken vessels along the coast of Malta’s sister isle, including the MV Karwela, MV Xlendi and MV Cominoland.
What do you think about the proposal?