Mississippi Gulf Fishing Banks, Inc.

Activity Report for the Period
February 12 thru May 14, 2009

Summary
During this period there were two reef monitoring trips. On February 27, a trip was made to Pyramid Cluster 070603B in FH-13, but poor visibility rendered the efforts fruitless. On May 2, the Shrimp Boat “St. Elmo” was visited in FH-2.

081011b St. Elmo Shrimp Boat 491F2
Position: 30°04.820'N / 88°33.278'W

This 70' Steel Hull Shrimp Boat washed ashore in Pass Christian Harbor during Hurricane Gustav. The Harbor had a lien on the Vessel and somehow obtained ownership and donated it to the DMR. The DMR Derelict Vessel Program paid 100% to recover the Vessel, environmentally clean it, and deploy it in FH-2. It sank at about 1:25PM on October 11 in about 58 feet of water in FH-2 with about 14 feet of relief off the bottom.

This visit was made on May 2, 2009, just under 6 months since her deployment. The reef showed to be developing nicely although it was obvious that some more time was needed to develop some true game fish. Spade Fish were abundant (150-200) as were smaller Red Snapper (25-30) and Sheepshead (10-15). A few Tomtates and a couple Trigger Fish were noted, but visibility was poor yielding low fish observations.

The Vessel landed upright with the bow facing in a generally North direction. Minimum water clearance was measured at 45 feet with a surrounding depth of 57 feet recorded. There was a foot or so of clearance under the Stern, but the rudder was not accessible. Barnacles were encrusting the hull but no urchins or invertebrates were noted. The Wheel House was penetrable, but it is a little bit of a tight squeeze to get through the doorways. The Gear Shift knobs are still present and measured 52 feet of water depth. Other depth measurements were taken for later comparisons as follows. Wheel House Roof 49', Bow Pulpit 54', Railing corners and edges 49', Bollard 53', Mast 46'. Overall the reef is progressing well and is expected to perform well as a fish haven.





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Author: Mark Primo Miller, Gautier, MS 39553