180-Foot Ship Sunk Off Delaware to Create New Artificial Reef (Watch Video)

Published 2 weeks agoon August 27, 2026

A 180-foot former offshore supply vessel has been deliberately sunk off Delaware to create new marine habitat and provide another site for recreational divers.

The Calcasieu Pass, originally built in 1982, spent its early working life supporting offshore oilfield operations before being converted into an Atlantic menhaden fishing vessel in 1989.

After more than three decades in the menhaden fleet, the vessel has now been given a new purpose on the seabed at Delaware’s Reef Site 13, also known as the Del-Jersey-Land Reef.

The vessel is 180 feet long with a 40-foot beam and is expected to provide complex underwater habitat for fish and invertebrates.

Over time, organisms including mussels, barnacles and corals are expected to colonise the structure, creating a new artificial reef ecosystem.

The wreck will also provide opportunities for recreational fishing and deep water diving, adding another attraction to Delaware’s extensive artificial reef programme.

Before the sinking, the Calcasieu Pass underwent extensive environmental preparation and received approval from the US Environmental Protection Agency and US Coast Guard. The vessel had to meet environmental cleanliness and safety requirements before it could be deployed as an artificial reef.

Delaware’s Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control invested $285,000 in federal Sport Fish Restoration funds to purchase and reef the vessel.

The Calcasieu Pass is the latest addition to Delaware’s artificial reef network, which includes 14 permitted reef sites.

For divers, the new wreck represents another substantial artificial reef site in the region — although its location and depth mean it is intended as a deeper-water dive rather than a straightforward shore-diving site.