Wreck of USS Mindanao (ARG-3)

 military, scuba diving facility / area, shipwreck, United States Navy

Laid down on April 11th 1943 as the Liberty Ship SS Elbert Hubbard at the Bethlehem Steel Sparrows Point Shipyard and launched 33 days later into ownership of the US Navy, the Hubbard's incomplete hull was taken in hand for conversion to a Luzon Class Internal Combustion Engine Repair Ship. Commissioned in November 1943 as the USS Mindanao, the new ship and crew spent roughly a month conducting training and shakedown maneuvers before departing for the Panama Canal and duty with the US Pacific Fleet.

Arriving at the rear-area Allied base of Noumea, New Caledonia in late January 1944 the Mindanao joined Service Squadron South Pacific and began her assigned duties of servicing the myriad of aircraft, ships, boats and just about anything else that relied on internal combustion for propulsion. Shifting to Espiritu Santo harbor in February the Mindanao and her crew remained in the Solomon Islands until September when she received orders to move North to Seeadler Harbor, Manaus which was being turned into a support base for the upcoming Philippine Invasion. Dropping anchor in Seeadler Harbor and joining Task Group 30.6, Mindanao's crew resumed their repair and support operations and continued them without incident until the morning of November 10th, 1944 when the Ammunition Ship USS Mount Hood (AE-11), moored broadside to Mindanao only 300 yards away, suffered an onboard explosion that led to the detonation of the ships' entire 3,800-ton load of munitions.

The vast majority of Mindanao's crew on duty or relaxing topside were killed and swept from her decks by the pressure wave created by the blast, which was followed by a wall of shrapnel that tore through the ships unarmored hull and wreaked havoc and devastation inside the ship. As the Mount Hood and her crew disappeared into a pall of fire and smoke, dazed crew aboard the Mindanao moved to combat the tremendous damage that their ship had taken, and assisted by Seabees and men from other ships succeeded in returning the ship to limited operation by November 18th, when she weighed anchor and crossed Seeadler Harbor to raft up with the Repair Ship USS Medusa (AR-1). Crew musters taken shortly after full repairs began would show that 180 men of Mindanao's crew were killed or wounded by the Mount Hood explosion.

Out of action and under repair until January 1945, the Mindanao returned to service and forward deployed from Seeadler to Ulithi Atoll, where her crew resumed their duty on vessels involved with the Okinawa Campaign for the remainder of the Second World War. Remaining in Far Eastern waters supporting the ships of the Allied Occupation forces until March 1946, Mindanao and her crew finally returned to the United States where she decommissioned at Orange, TX in July 1946. Placed into the Reserve Fleet first at Orange and then at Beaumont, TX, the Mindanao awaited the call to return to duty until being stricken from the Naval Register in 1961, after which she transferred to the control of MARAD where she remained until being donated to the State of Florida Artificial Reef Program in March 1980.

Following a final yard call for environmental remediation and preparation for use as an artificial reef, the Mindanao's hulk was towed to this location 11 miles Northeast of Ponce de León Inlet and scuttled in 85ft of water on November 11th, 1980. Now lying on an even keel, the wreck lies in a general N-S direction however time, storms and currents have taken their toll on the ship. Following a particularly bad series of Winter storms in 1995, the bow separated from the rest of the hull and now lies on its side.

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