WWI wreck found

A TEAM of divers are claiming to have discovered the wreckage of a World War I Royal Navy patrol ship off the Wigtownshire coast.

HMS Bayano was sank by a German U-boat in the North Channel between Northern Ireland and Scotland on 11 March 1915, with nearly 200 souls on board.

Now, divers from the ProjectXplore initiative have published their report on its whereabouts following a series of dives near Stranraer. The discovery came after months of archival research and an offshore sonar survey, with the vessel lying with a seabed depth of 106 metres (350ft).

The report states: "We are confident that we have conclusively identified the wreck as HMS Bayano, on the basis that she remains the only British Armed Merchant Cruiser from the First World War sunk in the North Channel with an armament of 6” (152mm) guns.

"No other British AMC from the First World War was sunk in the North Channel with this type of armament."

Dr Steffen Scholz, a technical diver and underwater photographer, said the identification had not been based on just one image but compared the wreckage to the dimensions, the single-funnel merchant layout, the refrigeration plant, the railing pattern and other indicators to prove it was the Bayano.

Before the war, SS Bayano started life as a twin-screw, twin-masted, steel-hulled, schooner-rigged steamship used as a commercial refrigerated cargo carrier, later requisitioned in 1914 for the war effort.

The report concluded: "For over 110 years, mystery had surrounded the identity of HMS Bayano. To the best of our knowledge, HMS Bayano had never been dived or identified prior to our expedition.

"Given the shipwreck’s unique historical significance and status as the final resting place of nearly 200 British sailors, the Royal Navy has been notified.

"We wish to thank everybody who played a part in piecing together the story behind HMS Bayano, her officers and crew."

Photos by Dr Steffen Scholz