- Okikawa Maru
Icons:
Location: SW of Concepcion
Depth: 33-85 ft. (10-26m)
The Okikawa Maru, (sometimes
called the Concepcion Wreck) is a
huge ship at over 550 ft. (168m) in
length. This is a civilian oil tanker
pressed into military service. Sunk
during the 1944 air raid, its most
remarkable feature is the bizarrely
bent and disfigured bow with black
coral trees and lionfish. This may be
in part due to the huge ship sinking
nose first and crashing to the sea
floor. The deck lies between 35
ft.(11m) at the bridge down to about
50 ft. (16m) towards the bow.
Divers can enter one of the upper
deck cargo areas and swim through
the bow wreckage. It is not
particularly deep at 85 ft. (26m) to
the sand. Currents here can be
strong as it sits in a channel. Divers
can hide by staying in the lee.
A shoal of barracuda often circles
divers and divers are likely to
encounter sweetlips, groupers,
batfish, lionfish, surgeons and
feeding mackerel. Large Jellyfish
often drift by this wreck in the
prevailing currents.Jellyfish in rock islandsBent bow of the Okikawa