Bergen
Wrecks in Western Norway (page 5)
The
steamship Radbod was sunk by British Beaufighters on the 5th of December
1944 outside Selbergvika in the Ørstafjorden after taking shelter to avoid the
danger of air attack. Radbod was on a journey southwards for repairs after an
accident outside Bodø in September the same year. During the air attack, the
vessel received heavy hits to the engine room from rockets and machine cannons
and sank without loss of life. Two British aircraft were shot down during the
battle. Today the wreck rests in a depth of twenty five to seventy meters just
outside Selbergvika straight west of Ørsta. She is a popular dive site
.
The
steamer Sanct Svithun was sunk on the 30th of September 1943 by six
British aircraft. Sanct Svithun was on a journey from Ålesund to Måløy. The
vessel was clearly marked with national colours which indicated that the target
was a civilian unarmed vessel. During the attack the vessel caught fire and many
perished. After the attack the vessel was still afloat, but eventually went
down. Today there is not much left of this vessel, which has been broken up by
the hard weather. The remains of Sanct Svithun lies at Buholmen outside Ervika
at a depth of five to thirty meters.
The SS Sterk was lost on the 13th of September 1909 in Skatestraumen by Bremanger after the ship had got into a heavy storm. The ship was on a routine voyage from Larsnes to Fredrikstad with a cargo of stone and a crew of sixteen men when they ran into bad weather. The Sterk hit a reef and water flooded into the ship. It only took a few minutes before the vessel sunk. Seven men died but the remainder of the crew were rescued by the vessel Astrea which witnessed the tragedy. The wreck can be found today at Skatestraumen north east of Bremanger upright at 20 t0 30 mtr and in good shape with the cargo in place there is evidence that she was a Iron sailing vessel. The tide is strong but brings good visibility with abundant marine life. the Skatestraumen is a busy shipping channel so dive planning for slack water is paramount.
The
German motor vessel Wilhiem was a supply vessel for the German forces
during the second world war. She was loaded with coal when she was torpedoed on
28th of November 1944 south of Tansøy in Brufjorden. In a swift assault, she was
attacked and torpedoed by the Norwegian MTB 717 and quickly sank. The crew set a
course towards Tansøy, but the ship floundered and sank. Today the wreck of
Welheim rests in a very good condition on her port side in a depth of 13mtr to
the top of the bow. The stern is at 70 mts. On the bridge and stern you can
still see an anti-aircraft positions. The only visible damage is to the hull
where the torpedo hit the starboard side.The bow is most impressive standing
clear of the sea bed 22mtr. Piles of coal from her holds are on the seabed.
Massive deck cranes project out above looking up can be a memorable experience.