Menorca · Spain · Wreck
Malakoff
A 110 m steamship with her deck at 30 m and the sand at 40
Area photo: Alejandro Muñoz Cabrisas · CC BY-SA 4.0
The Malakoff is a 110-metre French cargo steamship that struck rocks off Cap d'Artrutx in a night storm in January 1929 and sank in six or seven minutes. Her deck now lies at 30 to 32 metres with the seabed under her at 38 to 40, and strong currents run over the wreck, so the dive is worked by experienced divers on a short clock.
Also known as SS Malakoff, Malakoff Wreck.
Where it is and how deep
39.9178° N, 3.9569° EApproximate position — the dashed circle shows where the site lies; your operator's briefing has the mooring.
The dive
Divers drop onto the wreck off the south-west coast and meet the deck first, at 30 to 32 metres, with the sand around her at 38 to 40. Visibility at wreck level runs to about 19 metres, so the hull comes out of the blue in sections rather than all at once. Depth and current set the terms here: bottom time is short, and the route along her has to be decided before anyone gets in the water.
Salvage divers used explosives in the 1950s to take her superstructure off above deck level, so what is left is essentially hull and deck rather than a standing ship. Working along the plating you can still find ceramic tiles, crockery and cutlery in the wreck — she went down with a cargo of bagged cement bound for Madagascar via Algiers.
The steel has been colonised: sponges, red sea squirts and sea slugs cover the plates, painted comber and damselfish hold over them, and red mullet work the sand alongside. Groupers, congers and moray eels live in the wreck itself, barracuda pass along her flanks, and rare species of triggerfish are reported on her. With the profile involved, the ascent is a deliberate one rather than a drift up.
The wreck
- Vessel
- SS Malakoff
- Type
- Cargo steamship
- Length
- 110 m (361 ft)
- Built
- 1903
- Sunk
- 1929
- Cause
- Struck rocks off Cap d'Artrutx in a night storm after her lookouts missed the lighthouse
- Lies
- Deck at 30 to 32 m, seabed at 38 to 40 m, off the south-west coast
She was launched in February 1903 and completed that April. On 2 January 1929, caught in a storm off Menorca at night in rain and fog, her lookouts, helmsman and officer of the watch all failed to see Cap d'Artrutx lighthouse; she struck rocks off the cape and sank in six or seven minutes, carrying bagged cement for Madagascar via Algiers. In the 1950s salvage divers blew away her superstructure above deck level, leaving the hull that is dived today.
Marine life and season
- Groupers
- Barracuda
- Nudibranchs
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Off-season | Off-season | Off-season | Fair | Good | Prime | Prime | Prime | Prime | Good | Fair | Off-season |
Season follows Menorca: Menorca's tourist season runs May to October; June to September holds the warmest water, near 25–27°C in August, while February and March fall to about 12–14°C.
Know before you go
- Depth and strong current together: the sources that describe the wreck restrict it to advanced, experienced divers, and a current on a 30 m deck leaves no margin for a slow, improvised route.
Dive videos
Diving the Malakoff wreck with SON BOU SCUBA - Menorca · SON BOU SCUBA - MENORCA on YouTube
SCUBA PLUS INMERSION MALAKOFF · Scuba Plus on YouTube
Questions divers ask
How deep is the Malakoff wreck?+
Her deck lies at 30 to 32 metres and the seabed beneath her at 38 to 40. That depth, with the strong current over the wreck, is why both sources put her out of bounds for anyone without advanced experience.
What can you still see on the Malakoff?+
The superstructure was blown off by salvage divers in the 1950s, so the dive is on hull and deck. Ceramic tiles, crockery and cutlery can still be found in the wreck, and the plating carries sponges, red sea squirts and sea slugs.
Sources
- SS Malakoff — Wikipedia
- Malakoff (Wreck) — Scubago
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