Fri, June 27, 2003 and Updated
Tuesday, September 30, 2003
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Leagues Under the Sea By
Jeffrey K. Kalani, P.E.
…league - “a unit of distance equal to about three miles…” (The Merriam-Webster
Dictionary, 1998).
Trying to escape from the demands of an engineer’s work week, seven (7)
ASCE Hawaii Section Younger Member (YMF) members ventured beneath the clear
blue waters off of Waikiki to explore a shipwreck and get a glimpse of
the tropical undersea world surrounding our Hawaiian islands. On May 17,
2003, the seven (7) adventurous YMF members donned self-contained underwater
breathing apparatus (SCUBA) for the diving expedition aboard the Enzo,
a 36-foot long Power Catamaran.
Led by professional master diver guides from Diamond Head Divers, the first
dive expedition began by descending to the deck of a former yard oiler
vessel named Caroline, which was decommissioned after World War
II, then intentionally sunk in 1989. Now called the YO-257, this
178-foot long vessel rests in 100 feet of water and is a dream home for
a variety of beautiful fish, turtles, eels, coral, and other tropical marine
life. While exploring the upper decks of the YO-257, YMF divers
posed for underwater photos taken by passengers aboard Atlantis submarines,
which passed within 50 feet of the divers while viewing the
shipwreck.
The second diving expedition of the afternoon was the exploration of Turtle
Canyon, a “secret spot” in about 35 to 50 feet of water. The discovery
of a juvenile frog fish (still yellow and very rare) was one highlight
of this dive in addition to the abundant fish, octopus and coral that the
YMF divers were treated to. To top off the day, an awesome barbeque lunch
(prepared by YMF non-divers Ann Mukai and Tony Lau) was ready and waiting
for the YMF sea adventurers as they stepped off of the boat!
The YMF would like to thank Captain Karim “Enzo” Hammani of Diamond Head
Divers for making this YMF diving experience a memorable one. Diamond Head
Divers is a first class, full service, dive company offering training and
guided dive expeditions to all levels of interested divers. For more information
call Diamond Head Divers (Karim) at 224-2770. |
