Australian Wreck

Until recently this ship thought to have been sunk by the Royal Australian Air force, has now been identified as the Dutch vessel SS De Klerk. Scuttled by the Dutch in 1942 but salvaged by the Japanese and renamed Imabari Maru, she hit a mine and sunk 23km southwest of Labuan in 1944. She now lies at a fifty-degree angle on her port side, with only her metal skeleton left to attract abundant fish life. 339 passengers lost their lives, mostly workers and prisoners of war. The steam engine is a good example of its kind and the wreck is easy to penetrate. The vessel lies in 35 metres with the high side of the wreck rising to 25 metres. There is a huge blast hole in the starboard side. At the stern is the steel propeller which was visible in 1993 but was covered by sand in 2003. Source: www.asiadivesite.com 23 km Southwest of Labuan; 45min by speedboat from the marina. Australian Wreck is also known as SS De Klerk, Imabari Maru.