LT 221
THE HISTORY
The American tug boat, LT 221 is so called because it of its class: Lts - Longer Tugs (over 92 feet in length). The class code differentiated them from STs, or Smaller Tugs (between 55 and 92 feet). The role of this class of boats was assist large ships as they manoeuvred in and out of port and they were widely used in the Second World War in the Pacific and Atlantic as well as in the Mediterranean.
LT 221 was built in 1943 by the company Marietta at Pleasant, West Virginia - USA. She was built in the same shipyards as her sister ships number 217 to 231.She was 33 metres long and 19 high, with a 1200 horsepower engine. she probably sank after hitting one of the many hundreds of mines that protected the gulf of Cagliari during WWII.
Description:
We begin our dive by carefully following the guide-rope that leads us directly onto the ship, checking the Emergency tank that will remain at a depth of 6 metres in case we need a decompression stop later.
When we are a few metres from the ship we can make out the fact that she is divided in two parts, after the mine destroyed the central part of the tug. The bow is several metres away from the stern and lies at a 20° angle. As we are in open water the visibility sometimes limited and close to the main commercial routes in and out of the port of Cagliari, But luckily it often improves the nearer we get to the wreck. The guide rope is attached to the side of the stern, close to where the ships identification number is visible. From there we see the propeller, which lies on the seabed with two blades still intact and partially buried in the sand. As we leave the stern on our left hand side we can see the deck with the various surface structures fallen on the sand, with abandoned fishing nets all around. At this point, we are at a depth of approximately 50 metre and we climb slightly to swim around what remains of the bow. A small cannon still has its articulation intact, allowing it to swing in the current. A large net blocks the entrance to the bridge but through the window opening it is possible enter and see where the tiller wheel and the engine controls were. We swim back over the short distance that separates the two sections of the ship, observing the twisted metal of the original impact point. Reaching the rope it is time to return to the surface; our decompression stop awaits!
Arrivederci LT !
Wreck information
Name: Lt221
Type of ship: Tugboat with 1200hp
Date of costruction: 1943
Registration number: Lt221
Date of sinking: 15 October 1944
Cause of sinking: mine
Size of wreck: approx:45 metres
Position: Gulf of Cagliari offshrore from cape S.Elia
Dive information:
Position: The ship is almost intact, lying on its right side
Seabed: sandy
Depth: 50 metres
Difficulty: Medium
Current: dependant on the weather conditions, generally present when the wind is northerly.
Visibility: excellent in the summer, variable in the winter and spring.
Maximum summer temperature:18°C
Minimum winter temperature: 13 °C
Of particular interest
The propeller, the bridge and the firehose.
Flora and Fauna:
DIVING FROM
CAGLIARI
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