CARBINEER

The SS Carbineer was a coastal cargo steamer built in 1907 in Newcastle-upon-Tyne for the Fisher-Renwick Manchester-London Steamship Company. Her career was brief, lasting only seven years before a fateful encounter in the English Channel. On April 22nd, 1914, while navigating through thick fog off Start Point, Devon, the Carbineer collided with the much larger SS Brika. The impact was catastrophic for the smaller vessel. While the Brika survived, the Carbineer was mortally wounded and quickly began to sink. Fortunately, the proximity of the other vessel allowed for a swift rescue, and all 14 members of her crew were saved before she slipped beneath the waves.

Resting upright on a sandy seabed at 32 metres, the Carbineer is a popular and accessible wreck for local divers. Though her wooden decks have long since rotted away, the hull remains largely intact, with the bow and stern still clearly defined. The single boiler and triple-expansion engine are prominent features midships, providing shelter for a variety of marine life. Divers can expect to see large shoals of bib, pollack, and poor cod swirling around the superstructure, while conger eels and lobsters have taken up residence within the decaying hull, making it a lively and picturesque dive.