400' Wreck in Neiafu Harbor 80-120 feet The Clan McWilliam lies in 122' (37m) of water at the far end of Neiafu harbor. The bow buoy is to the east.
She was a 6,000-ton, 423' (127m) copra steamer, built in 1918. In December 1927, she steamed into Neiafu harbor with a smoldering fire in her #3 hold. The forward holds collapsed, cracking open several plates. The captain and engineer tried to save the ship by running it aground in the shallows at the foot of the bay but didn't make it in time. One story has it that the captain locked the engineer
into the engine room to keep him from abandoning the effort. (See the official version below from the inquiry conducted in Nuku'alofa immediately after the incident)
The wreck superstructure starts at about 60 feet, and the bottom is at 120 feet. Most of the deck is between 80-95' deep, so your bottom time will be limited to only about 20 minutes. If you are going to explore the whole wreck thoroughly, plan to do it in 2 dives, turning around at the main cabin (approx in the middle of the wreck). Good visibility is essential for this dive. This wreck is old, and it is dangerous to attempt any pe*******on of the wreck. The sketch shows 3 buoys marking the wreck (bow, middle, and stern). The middle buoy is missing (as of early 2012). The stern buoy now trails off the wreck horizontally for about 100 feet, at 15-25' depth (a good place to do your safety stop). On a day with decent visibility, you can just start to see the wreck below you at about 30'.
