Diving in Zanzibar
Stone Town Wreck: The Penguin
In 1919 as a result of increased shipping through the harbor after the First World War, the Zanzibar Government decided to build a new dock capable of taking vessels alongside at all tides. Construction commenced in 1920 and it was soon evident that a dredger would be required. The Penguin was purchased for £20,000, from South Africa, and arrived on 27th of February 1922 when it began dredging in front of the wharf.
All went well until it was revealed that there were large numbers of rocks not of Zanzibar origin buried in the seabed. This caused a flurry of correspondence. It was determined the stones were used as ballast and dumped in the harbor by trading dhows in times gone by.
The dredger worked well pumping thousands of cubic yards of sand, until the dredge Master resigned and the pontoon came to a halt. The Crown Agents in London were asked to recruit a suitable replacement, with the condition that not only should he be familiar with steam machinery, but that he be of sober and steady habits and of strong physique. The dredging continued until it was noticed that the volume of material being pumped had fallen dramatically. The pumps were dismantled and found to be worn out and the parts sent to Bombay for overhaul. Some months later the Penguin returned to service.
By 1929 the dredger had completed the task and was laid up pending disposal. It was considered beyond economic repair and suggested the vessel be sold or sunk after the removal of the machinery. Three years later the dredger was still laid up and being considered for further work.
70 years later the Penguin was discovered lying in 120 feet of water some three miles off the Zanzibar shore, and initially defied attempts to identify it, being described as a crane barge or a small tug. A recent Zanzibar dive on the site by the author finally identified it as a steam powered dredger. The tell tale clues being the overboard discharge pipes and the twin compound engines connected to two delivery pumps with the main suction pipe lying on the sea bed alongside.
The large Scotch boiler is very prominent and this together with the two compound engines had led to the theory of a tug. Research in the Zanzibar Archives photographic collection showed the vessel with a large funnel, pumping material during the building of the main wharf back in the 1920s. How the dredger came to be in its present position is unclear. Was it scuttled or did it sink by accident? From its present position it would appear to have been sunk deliberately…Source: Kevin Patience.
The Penguin
Builders: William Simons, Renfrew, Glasgow, Scotland. 1905.
Length: 90 feet.
Beam: 25 feet.
Machinery: Twin 2 cyl. compound steam engines.
Position: West of Pange sand bank.
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