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Hurghada, El Gouna & the Gubal wrecksTechnicalwreck

SS Rosalie Moller

Also known as Rosalie Moller; Rosalie Moeller; Rosalie Moller; Francis

Sister ship in fate to the Thistlegorm - bombed by the same Luftwaffe unit two nights later

Map: Wikimedia Commons · public domain / CC

Sister ship in fate to the Thistlegorm - bombed by the same Luftwaffe unit two nights later. Standing bolt upright on an even keel with masts collapsed over the port side - one of the most atmospheric wrecks in Egypt. Deck at 30-38 m, seabed at about 50 m: a genuine deep and often dark dive. Depth 30–50 m; liveaboard only; Frequently strong; the wreck lies in open water in the Straits of Gubal and shotting the wreck against current is routine current; visibility Often poor to moderate - the site is notorious for dark, low-visibility conditions m. ship_type: Steam cargo ship / collier (built as Francis for the Moller Line, later…

Highlights

  • Sister ship in fate to the Thistlegorm - bombed by the same Luftwaffe unit two nights later
  • Standing bolt upright on an even keel with masts collapsed over the port side - one of the most atmospheric wrecks in Egypt
  • Deck at 30-38 m, seabed at about 50 m: a genuine deep and often dark dive
  • Bomb damage at No. 3 hold clearly visible
  • Intact bridge, telegraph pedestals and coal-filled holds

Marine life

  • dense clouds of glassfish and cardinalfish
  • fusiliers
  • barracuda
  • giant trevally
  • tuna
  • groupers
  • big soft-coral growth on the rails and masts

Good to know

Best season
Year-round. Water 22-29 C; calmest seas and best visibility March-November, with the coolest water and strongest northerlies December-February.
Protected status
Egyptian Red Sea marine protected area; HEPCA-maintained mooring buoys, anchoring prohibited
Fees
No separate site fee published; environmental tax historically 3.5 LE/diver/day (Red Sea Governorate, 2001), collection suspended after January 2011 per HEPCA.
Wreck
ship_type: Steam cargo ship / collier (built as Francis for the Moller Line, later Rosalie Moller); builder: Barclay Curle & Co., Whiteinch, Glasgow, Scotland (yard no. 479); year_built: Launched 12 December 1909; completed January 1910; length_m: 108.2; beam_m: 15.0; tonnage: 3,963 GRT; date_sunk: 8 October 1941, about 00:45; cause: Bombed at anchor in the Straits of Gubal by Heinkel He 111 bombers of II./KG 26 - the same unit that sank the Thistlegorm two nights earlier. One of two bombs released struck No. 3 hold; she sank in about 90 minutes with the loss of two crew.; cargo: Best Welsh coal, bound for Alexandria to bunker the Mediterranean Fleet; orientation: Upright on an even keel on a sand bottom, bow roughly north; both masts have fallen over the port side. Superstructure/bridge around 30-34 m, main deck 38-40 m, seabed and propeller about 45-50 m.; wreck_depth_m: 30-50; penetration: Yes - the bridge is easy to penetrate although stripped of fittings, and the holds and engine room are entered by technically trained divers. Depth and darkness put full penetration into technical territory; nitrox or trimix and deco planning are standard.; discovered: Rediscovered in 1990s (located by Sinai Divers/Red Sea researchers)

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