Wrecks of Coron — Sunken WWII History in the Philippines Text and photos by Brandi Mueller 36 X-RAY MAG : 95 : 2020 EDITORIAL FEATURES TRAVEL NEWS WRECKS EQUIPMENT BOOKS SCIENCE & ECOLOGY TECH EDUCATION PROFILES PHOTO & VIDEO PORTFOLIO travel Coron Lionfish in the coral (above) and Nembrotha lineolata nudibranch (right) on the Lusong gunboat wreck Being an avid wreck diver, Coron and many green islands rising up from the has been on my bucket list for ages. water at different heights as far as I could see. “Beautiful” seemed like an understatement. Having followed the underwater The boat driver picked up speed as we remains of the Pacific Theater World made our way closer to the dive resort, the War II battles, I have found myself in only property on the island, where I would be some of the most beautiful places on staying to dive the wrecks for the next week. Sheer limestone cliffs got closer and the boat earth, from the Solomon Islands to turned a corner past a rock face revealing Truk Lagoon and many others. Coron a white sandy beach and several thatch is no exception. chalets on stilts. I was soon being shown to one of the chalets with an epic view of palm Arriving on the island of Busuanga after a short, trees and ocean in front of me, and even one-hour flight from the Philippines' capital city macaque monkeys could be seen wandering of Manila, I was picked up and escorted by the grounds. out of range. Several ships made their way to van and boat to Sangat Island. As we depart- Coron Bay to essentially hide out and hope- ed the dock, there were dense mangroves WWII, Coron, 1944 fully not be found by the Americans. on either side, green foliage encroaching on In the summer of 1944, the Americans It is unknown if the ships were discov- the small waterway, hardly big enough for two and Allied forces ramped up action in the ered by aerial photo reconnaissance or if boats to pass in some areas. Philippines. From September 21 to 24, the Japanese radio transmissions were inter- Admiring my surroundings, I lost my breath United States attacked Manila Bay, sinking cepted, but their location was no longer a for a moment when the walls of mangroves 15 ships. In an effort to protect the rest of the secret. The US carrier group was 340 miles on either side seemed to open like a curtain fleet, the Japanese sent the remaining ships from Coron Bay, but Admiral William F. to reveal a wide-open expanse of blue water to locations they had hoped were safe and “Bull” Halsey from the battleship USS New Diver inside Kogyo Maru (above); Traditional-styled outriggers on the beach (top right); Cuttlefish under gun turret on bow of Olympia Maru (previous page) 37 X-RAY MAG : 95 : 2020 EDITORIAL FEATURES TRAVEL NEWS WRECKS EQUIPMENT BOOKS SCIENCE & ECOLOGY TECH EDUCATION PROFILES PHOTO & VIDEO PORTFOLIO Diver on the bow with gun turret of travel the Olympia Maru Coron Underwater lers, engines and artifacts removed, for 75 years, but there is still plenty left to see on the these ships now ships. rest below the waves of one of Olympia Maru the most beau- My first dive was on the Olympia Maru, tiful places in a 400ft (122m) freighter sitting upright the world, both with the top deck around 60ft (18m). on land and I was visiting during the rainy season underwater. when visibility can be a bit murky, Topside sheer and we descended for a few minutes limestone cliffs before the shadow of a ship came into and rock faces view. Starting at the stern, I followed jut out of the my dive guide straight into the stern- blue waters and castle of the ship. Coils of lines could are covered in be seen, and a stash of beer bottles flourishing jun- were on the floor, but what I mostly gle. Located noticed were several ladders and sup- within the Coral port beams bending at the weight of Triangle, the the ship. As the years pass, and time DOWN HERE, oceanic region and the ocean take their toll on these with the highest ships, it is important to remember that MISTAKES CAN marine biodiver- they are ever changing. I was told sity on Earth, the some of the decks were starting to BE COSTLY. ships are cov- pancake on top of one another, and Jersey designed a mission that was arrived at 9:00 a.m, and in just minutes, ered in abundant and colorful marine what I saw concurred with this warning. approved by Vice Admiral Marc A. they took out the fleet and quickly life. Unfortunately, the ships have been We continued swimming through THE COST OF A DIVE ACCIDENT Mitscher, commander of Task Force 38 departed so they could make it back extensively salvaged, with their propel- the interior of the ship—in and out of CAN EASILY SURPASS $50,000. on the aircraft carrier USS Lexington. safely. As they flew back to the carri- + Dive Accident Insurance Protects You Ninety-six Grumman F6F Hellcat ers, there were 12 ships sunk or burning Against Unforeseen Events fighters and 24 Curtiss SB2C Helldiver in the bay behind them. The planes all dive bombers took off at 5:50 a.m. returned safely. One ship was reported + Covers the Medical Costs of Dive on September 24 for what was the to have escaped, the Kamoi, dam- Accidents Up to $500,000 longest-range air attack ever launched aged, but later reported to have made + Picks Up Where Your Primary from aircraft carriers at that time. They it to port in Hong Kong. Coverage Stops + Recognized Worldwide + Affordable Annual Plans Explore with DAN @diversalertnetwork DAN.org/INSURANCE *Explore DAN.org/INSURANCE for complete plan and coverage details. Coverage may vary by state. COURTESY OF SANGAT ISLANDDIVE RESORT COURTESYSANGAT OF Historical photo of Olympia Maru Diver and fish life inside the Olympia Maru 38 X-RAY MAG : 95 : 2020 EDITORIAL FEATURES TRAVEL NEWS WRECKS EQUIPMENT BOOKS SCIENCE & ECOLOGY TECH EDUCATION PROFILES PHOTO & VIDEO PORTFOLIO travel Boiler (left), diver and fuel drums (above) inside the Olympia Maru fish, which reflected like cent nitrox, and we slowly made glitter in our dive lights. our way back to the stern on the Emerging from within the outside of the ship, which was bowels of the ship, I was teeming with fish. I returned to the greeted at the bow by sun- surface after the first dive, excited light and fish everywhere. A for more. huge school of yellow goatfish stretched from one side of the ship to the other and fusiliers darted around feeding in the water column behind them. The gun turret remains but there is no gun. Inspecting the platform, there was a giant cuttlefish doing a poor job of hiding massive cargo holds with blue underneath. Its brilliant pur- ambient light streaming in. A ple and maroon colors gave large boiler remained as well as it away in an instant and it many crushed fuel drums. Even flashed bright colors for my inside the dark and rusty wreck, camera. there were schools of cardi- Shallow depths allowed for Pufferfish with remora and juvenile gold- nalfish and other small silvery a nice long dive on 32 per- en trevallies on the mooring line of the Olympia Maru 39 X-RAY MAG : 95 : 2020 EDITORIAL FEATURES TRAVEL NEWS WRECKS EQUIPMENT BOOKS SCIENCE & ECOLOGY TECH EDUCATION PROFILES PHOTO & VIDEO PORTFOLIO travel Fire bricks (above) and diver (right) inside and by the boilers (top left) of the Morazan becoming a cargo vessel for the IJN. On her starboard side sitting at depths of 45 to 85ft (14 to 26m), the estimated 325ft (100m) vessel has a lot of life and some really cool things to see in its interior. Swimming into the engine room was like swimming into a massive cavern. The Morazan or Ekkai Maru engines were salvaged, but two huge boilers remain, DIVE RESORT ISLAND COURTESYOF SANGAT Built in 1908 in the United Kingdom and first named and divers can swim in-between them through a tri- the Manco, this ship was sold to Central America in angular opening underneath. Fire bricks with English 1921 and renamed the Morazan. In 1941, the ship names can be seen as well as coal in the corners of Fish life and coral on the smoke stack was captured by the Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN) the ship. There was open space, allowing for light to of the Morazan (above); Razorfish and in Shanghai, and in 1942, renamed the Ekkai Maru, filter into the wreck while moving through large, easy sea whips on the Morazan (right) Historical photo of the Morazan or Ekkai Maru 40 X-RAY MAG : 95 : 2020 EDITORIAL FEATURES TRAVEL NEWS WRECKS EQUIPMENT BOOKS SCIENCE & ECOLOGY TECH EDUCATION PROFILES PHOTO & VIDEO PORTFOLIO travel penetrations. It was really fun to twist a wall dive, with enormous cargo- and turn through the passageways, hold openings through which one and it made me feel small moving can swim. through this massive ship. We went into the hold containing Outside the wreck, there was the machinery, and one can easily marine life as if it were a reef and not see how everything, including bags a ship. The fallen smokestack lay in of cement, has toppled to the low- the sand, and purple sea whip corals est point, which is now the side of seemed to sprout out of it, with fish the ship. The bulldozer and tractor hiding within.