(DiverWire) It’s one of the newest scuba diving sites in the world – the Danny McCauley Memorial Reef. The artificial reef, sunk in 80 feet of water last month, is actually a 110-ft former tug boat called the Pocahontas. But from now on, thanks to efforts of dozens of divers and contributors in the Palm Beach area, the site has been named in memory of Danny McCauley, an area high school student killed by a drunk driver last year.
Described by friends as “an avid free diver and spear fisherman, an outdoorsman to the core”, plans for the unique memorial actually started at McCauley’s funeral last year. Since that time, a campaign http://www.doitfordanny.com/, has helped raise the funds necessary for the artificial reef. It’s a fitting memorial. “Danny would rather live underwater than above,” said his father, T.J. McCauley, 56.
T.J. McCauley contributed a large personal donation to the cause, along with a long list of other benefactors including local dive stores, individuals, civic groups and family members.
According to an official of the Palm Beach County Diving Association, “The Danny McCauley Memorial Reef has been deployed in less than 80 feet of water just north of the Lake Worth inlet with the intention of adding to a series of wrecks/reefs easily accessible to all divers on the drift dives the area is famous for.
This 110 foot World War II vintage tugboat, formerly called the Pocahontas, was deployed perfectly upright with the bow facing south. Being a relatively small vessel at a moderate depth with plenty of open areas to explore, this promises to be an excellent dive for open water divers.”
Local dive centers have already started scheduling dive outings to the site. For more information, visit the website.
Thank you to the staff of Pura Vida Divers for providing photos and background information about this impressive new dive site.
