Coast Guard cutter Mohawk set to be sunk off Lee County, Fla

The 165-foot Coast Guard cutter Mohawk, now a floating museum in Key West, should be an artificial reef off Lee County by June 2012.

Mohawk was involved in 14 attacks on German U-boats during World War II. / Photo by Brian Lapointe/Special to The News-Press

By mid-2012, a significant piece of maritime military history could be resting on the sea floor 15 miles off Lee County.

Miami-Dade Historic Maritime Museum Inc., has agreed to donate the 165-foot World War II Coast Guard cutter Mohawk to Lee County to be scuttled as an artificial reef.

Lee County has also been awarded a $1.5 million grant from West Coast Inland Navigation District to pay for towing the vessel from Key West, cleaning and sinking it. The preferred destination for Mohawk is the ARC Reef site in 60 feet of water.

“We’re in the process of doing all the logistic things like writing contracts,” said Mike Campbell, the county’s artificial reef coordinator. “We’ve never done a project like this before, so we’re figuring out the process. It’s going to take a while. The bottleneck with reefing ships is always funding, and we’ve made that leap.”

Commissioned in 1935, the “A” class cutter Mohawk served as an escort and ice patrol ship during World War II and was involved in 14 attacks against German U-boats.

Since 2006, Mohawk has been a floating museum in Key West and is being replaced in that role by the 327-foot cutter Ingham.

“When a ship gets to the end of its useful life – Mohawk is 75 years old – it takes a substantial amount of work and money to keep her afloat,” said museum manager Bill Verge, a 23-year Coast Guard veteran. “Mohawk needs $300,000 worth of work; we just spent $1 million on Ingham. So this was a business decision.

“Another decision was whether to turn her over for scrap so people can make razor blades out of her or sink her as an artificial reef so her name can go on for another 80 years.”

Artificial reefs provide habitat for fish and bring money into the local economy; a recent study showed that Lee County’s artificial reef system had an economic impact in 2009 of $104.2 million.

Mohawk will add to the ecological and economic benefits, said Lee County Commissioner Ray Judah, who is also a navigation district commissioner.

“This ship has a lot of history; it played an active role in World War II,” Judah said. “A lot of military vessels that have been sunk as reefs are in deep water. Because Mohawk will be in shallow water, it should be a tremendous dive site for people from all over the world.”

Brent Argabright, owner of Dean’s Dive Center in Fort Myers, agreed.

“I really think this is a great thing,” he said. “It could definitely bring tourism dollars to an area that’s not necessarily known for diving. And the lore of the ship adds to it.”

Although several other vessels have been sunk off Lee County as artificial reefs, Mohawk will be the largest vessel and the only military vessel.

“This is the first ship in your area with an identity and a history,” Verge said. “It’s the last surviving 165-foot ‘A’ class cutter from World War II. We’re going to miss the old gal, but it’s a proper burial for her.”

© 2011, admin. All rights reserved.