The Midnight Hour

The Midnight Hour was a 61-foot commercial squid fishing boat, built in 1958 and based out of San Pedro. On the night of August 30, 2011, she sank off the West End of Catalina Island, near Eagle Rock, settling onto a sandy bottom in about 100 feet of water. All six crew members aboard were safely rescued, and the cause of the sinking was never officially determined.

The wreck remains largely intact, resting on her starboard side. The hull has since become a thriving artificial reef, and divers working the site are often greeted by numerous species of marine life.

An Underwater Threat

Like so many wrecks off Southern California, the Midnight Hour has become draped in lost and abandoned fishing nets. Snagged on the structure, this derelict gear keeps “ghost fishing” long after it was lost, entangling fish, invertebrates, and the marine life that now call the wreck home. Left in place, the netting also smothers the reef community growing across the hull and slowly breaks down into microplastics.

The Cleanup Effort

In 2026 the Midnight Hour became Ghost Diving USA’s newest active project. Working from the dive boat Giant Stride and supported by Healthy Seas and Hyundai USA, our technical dive teams descend in pairs to carefully cut away and lift the netting while documentation divers record the work. Each recovered section is bagged, raised to the surface with lift bags, and delivered to Aquafil or other local partners to be upcycled or used for outreach programs to the community.

Project Highlights

• Expert dive teams. Removal is carried out by trained technical divers, with dedicated documentation and surface-support teams on every mission.
• Diver-assisted removal. Net is cut and lifted by hand to minimize damage to the wreck and the reef community living on it, not dragged or torn free.
• Recycled, not landfilled. Recovered nylon net is delivered to Aquafil or distributed to partners to use for outreach initiatives.
• An ongoing commitment. With net already staged at the bow, the Midnight Hour joins the Tuna Clipper and UB-88 as a continuing focus of our Southern California cleanup work.

Gallery

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