Northern Territory

Litchfield Municipality

Australia

"The USAT Meigs, a United States Army transport vessel (sometimes incorrectly referred to as the USS Meigs), was sunk in Darwin Harbour during the first Japanese air raid against the Australia mainland on February 19, 1942.

Built San Pedro, California, in 1921 as the West Lewart, the Meigs had a steel hull, measured 12,568 Gross Tons (also cited as 11358 tons), 430.7 feet (140m) long, 54.3 feet (16m) beam and 26.2 feet draft. As the largest vessel in Darwin Harbour she was frequently under air attack, and went down in flames after being struck by incendiary bombs and aerial torpedoes. Two of its crew of sixty-six were killed.

Although the superstructure of the wreck was salvaged after the war by Fujita Salvage of Osaka, Japan, the cargo of munitions, railway lines, Bren gun carriers and trucks intended for Allied forces in Portuguese Timor remains. The Meigs is now a dive site, where the remnants of the cargo are as visible as the remains of the vessel itself. It lies in 26m of water, and due to the large tidal movements creating strong currents and poor visibility, is only divable around neap tides."

Description source: Wikipedia.org


Darwin Harbour

USAT Meigs is also known as USS Meigs (incorrect naming).