The Roraima Wreck
The white-haired wreck, sunk by Mount Pelée
Town : Saint-Pierre
The Roraima is the most striking of the wrecks in the bay of Saint-Pierre. She lies at around fifty metres, and it is possible to enter as far as the engine room.
8 May 1902
That morning, Mount Pelée destroyed Saint-Pierre in a matter of minutes. The pyroclastic flow swept the town and the bay, and some twenty ships at anchor went down with it.
The Roraima was one of them. This is no ordinary wreck: it is a witness, lying on the bottom, to one of the deadliest eruptions in history.
The white-haired wreck
The nickname came from Commander Cousteau, who dived here. The pale algae covering the hull give it, in the light, the look of floating white hair.
These historic wrecks are protected and marked. They are visited, not stripped: nothing comes up to the surface, ever.
What level you need here
| Your level | What you can do here |
|---|---|
| Levels 1 and 2 | No, the depth is beyond your limits |
| Level 3 | Yes, unguided to 60 m, with a dive director present |
This is a deep dive, a short one, and one that is planned. Entering a wreck adds rules of its own: it is not attempted without training.