In mid-February 2022, we stumbled upon the wreck of a sunken Anchor Handling Tug off Cape Agulhas, during a routine survey. After searching through the limited information available in the public domain, it was suggested that this may be the missing Smit-Lloyd 102, which sunk on New Year’s Eve in 1970.
Unfortunately, upon sending a Remote Operated Vehicle down to capture images of the 90m-deep wreck, the ships distinguishing features did not match the Smit-Lloyd 102, and the mystery deepened. Now, we are happy to announce that we have finally arrived at a positive identification of the ship.
The wreck we found is of the Moon Tide, a tug of the same length that was carrying the same cargo as the Smit-Lloyd 102, and that did not appear in our initial research. With so many similarities, especially when viewing the wreck through our Side Scan Sonar technology, and without the availability of more info on shipwrecks in the area, it was natural to suggest that this may indeed be the Smit-Lloyd 102. We are sad that it is a different ship, but we are satisfied that the mystery has been solved.
Built in 1977 by Seattle Tacoma Shipbuilding Corp, the Moon Tide was owned by Tidewater Marine Service, based in New Orleans, USA. Carrying similar cargo to the Smit-Lloyd 102, the ship capsized and sank on 26 August, 1997. Luckily, all crewmembers were saved.
We look forward to uncovering even more about this ship, and will keep you updated as we learn more.