Charles L. Brown

The Charles L. Brown is a decommissioned cable-laying ship intentionally sunk in 1996 as an artificial reef, now sitting upright in 35 metres on a sandy bottom off Statia's southern coast. The wreck is largely intact and penetrable for experienced divers, with the bridge, engine room, and cable-laying machinery all accessible. In the years since its sinking the hull has been thoroughly colonised by encrusting sponges, black coral, and wire coral, and the structure acts as a fish aggregating device for enormous schools of horse-eye jacks, French grunts, and glassy sweepers. Moray eels inhabit every dark corner and nurse sharks are frequently encountered resting beneath the stern section.