VHB 54

Wreck Dive | Boat access

Steel Hopper Barge | Max Depth: 54 m (177 ft) — Graveyard

VHB-54
Source: State Library Victoria

The VHB 54 shipwreck is the remains of a steel hopper barge that was scuttled in the Victorian Ships' Graveyard on 17 December 1970. The VHB 54 is a sister ship to the VHB 53.

Diving the VHB 54 Shipwreck

The bow and stern are in reasonable condition. There is a large cogged wheel in the midships area which was used to open the doors for the dredged material to be dumped.

Bass Strait Warning: Always keep an eye on sea conditions throughout any shore or boat dive in Bass Strait on Victoria's coastline. Please read the warnings on the web page diving-in-bass-strait before diving or snorkelling this site.

VHB 54 Shipwreck History

The overall length of the VHB 54 was approximately 150 ft (46 m), with a beam of 18.5 ft (5.64 m).

The VHB 54 was brought out from Holland in 1950 when the Australian Dredging and General Works Pty Ltd began a contract for dredging works at the entrance to the Yarra River. The task was to remove silt from the area to the east of the river entrance. Later this excavation would be developed into the present Webb Dock. Vessels brought out from Holland for this contract included the bucket dredge Beverwijk 19, the unpowered hopper bargesVHB 53 and VHB 54, a diesel tug, two diesel hopper barges, plus other small attending craft.

VHB 54 Sinking — Scuttled 17 December 1970

The VHB 54 was towed out to the Victorian Ships' Graveyard in Bass Strait and scuttled on Thursday 17 December 1970.

See also, Heritage Council Victoria: VH B 54, and
Australian National Shipwreck Database: VH B 54.

Heritage Warning: Any shipwreck or shipwreck relic that is 75 years or older is protected by legislation. Other items of maritime heritage 75 years or older are also protected by legislation. Activities such as digging for bottles, coins or other artefacts that involve the disturbance of archaeological sites may be in breach of the legislation, and penalties may apply. The legislation requires the mandatory reporting to Heritage Victoria as soon as practicable of any archaeological site that is identified. See Maritime heritage. Anyone with information about looting or stolen artefacts should call Heritage Victoria on (03) 7022 6390, or send an email to heritage.victoria@delwp.vic.gov.au.

Finding the VHB 54 Shipwreck

Over the years we've been provided with different GPS marks for the VHB 54. The GPS marks we know of in circulation for the VHB 54 are:

• Book - Victoria's Ships' Graveyard GPS (verified)
  Latitude: 38° 20.588′ S   (38.343138° S / 38° 20′ 35.3″ S)
  Longitude: 144° 25.057′ E   (144.417622° E / 144° 25′ 3.44″ E)
• Dive Victoria:
  Latitude: 38° 20.589′ S   (38.34315° S / 38° 20′ 35.34″ S)
  Longitude: 144° 25.058′ E   (144.41763333333° E / 144° 25′ 3.48″ E)
  2 m, bearing 143°, SE
• Geoff Rodda 1:
  Latitude: 38° 20.597′ S   (38.343283333333° S / 38° 20′ 35.82″ S)
  Longitude: 144° 25.028′ E   (144.41713333333° E / 144° 25′ 1.68″ E)
  46 m, bearing 249°, WSW
• Geoff Rodda 2:
  Latitude: 38° 20.585′ S   (38.343083333333° S / 38° 20′ 35.1″ S)
  Longitude: 144° 25.073′ E   (144.41788333333° E / 144° 25′ 4.38″ E)
  24 m, bearing 75°, ENE
• John Lawler:
  Latitude: 38° 20.587′ S   (38.34311673° S / 38° 20′ 35.22″ S)
  Longitude: 144° 25.058′ E   (144.41763283° E / 144° 25′ 3.48″ E)
  3 m, bearing 21°, NNE

Wathaurong (Wadda-Warrung) country

Traditional Owners — This dive site is in the traditional Country of the Wathaurong (Wadda-Warrung) people of the Kulin Nation. This truly ancient Country includes the coastline of Port Phillip, from the Werribee River in the north-east, the Bellarine Peninsula, and down to Cape Otway in the south-west. We wish to acknowledge the Wathaurong as Traditional Owners. We pay respect to their Ancestors and their Elders, past, present and emerging. We acknowledge Bunjil the Creator Spirit of this beautiful land, who travels as an eagle, and Waarn, who protects the waterways and travels as a crow, and thank them for continuing to watch over this Country today and beyond.

 

VHB 54 Location Map

Latitude: 38° 20.588′ S   (38.343138° S / 38° 20′ 35.3″ S)
Longitude: 144° 25.057′ E   (144.417622° E / 144° 25′ 3.44″ E)
Datum: WGS84 | Google Map
Added: 2012-07-22 09:00:00 GMT, Last updated: 2022-05-11 12:06:19 GMT
Source: Book - Victoria's Ships' Graveyard GPS (verified)
Nearest Neighbour: Victorian, 791 m, bearing 164°, SSE
Steel Hopper Barge.
Scuttled: 17 December 1970.
Victorian Ships' Graveyard, Bass Strait.
Depth: 52 to 54 m.

DISCLAIMER: No claim is made by The Scuba Doctor as to the accuracy of the dive site coordinates listed here. Should anyone decide to use these GPS marks to locate and dive on a site, they do so entirely at their own risk. Always verify against other sources.

The marks come from numerous sources including commercial operators, independent dive clubs, reference works, and active divers. Some are known to be accurate, while others may not be. Some GPS marks may even have come from maps using the AGD66 datum, and thus may need be converted to the WGS84 datum. To distinguish between the possible accuracy of the dive site marks, we've tried to give each mark a source of GPS, Google Earth, or unknown.