A Coast Guard cutter from the 1930s that was once a floating restaurant in Ft. Lauderdale no lies on the bottom in 70 feet of water. This is a great wreck that is easy to explore and has abundant sea life. Lat 26 18.110 Lon 80 03.700
Location: Almost a mile offshore inside the third reef line. The former Coast
Guard Cutter Nemesis served as a sub chaser during WW II; she was launched in
1934 from Point Pleasant, Virginia. The 337 ton, rivet steel ship was
permanently stationed in St. Petersburg, where she served and protected Florida.
Although not the fastest ship in the fleet, she was perfectly designed for
search and rescue missions in the Gulf of Mexico and South Atlantic. The
constant battering of hurricanes kept the Nemesis busy picking up survivors from
disabled and weather-beaten ships and towing stricken vessels to safety. From
1934 to 1942, she saved hundreds of lives as well as millions of dollars worth
of property. During world War II, the Nemesis was used for an entirely different
purpose. As 1942 rolled in, German U-boats were putting tremendous pressure on
commercial shipping off the coast of U.S. These warships target oil tankers
making their way from Texas and South America. The cutter was used for hunting
down Nazi subs, and prove very good at it. After the war, she was again
stationed in St. Petersburg, until her decommissioning in 1964. In 1979, a local
business bought the vessel and converted into a floating restaurant and bar. The
owner ran into financial problems and sold the vessel.
The new owner rename the
ship/restaurant as the Ancient Mariner and were scheduled to reopen in 1981.
This is when the story turns bizarre. Just before the reopening in 1981, she
capsized and sank at the dock, for no apparent reason. It took more then $85,000
to re-float and renovate the water damaged restaurant. Once again open, the
Ancient Mariner became popular eatery in the Fort Lauderdale area. In 1986,
however, an event still remembered by locals sealed the ship’s fate. More than
100 customers and restaurant employees contracted hepatitis A from an infected
salad maker employed at the restaurant. This was the largest outbreak of
hepatitis A in Florida history. The running joke among divers is to not eat any
fish caught on the wreck just in case some of the virus is still around. She was
sunk as an artificial reef in June 9, 1991 as part of the Broward Reef program.
The 165-foot Cutter rest in 70 feet of water. A steel-hulled work boat named the
C-Note sits 60 feet West of her bow.
