44-year-old wreck washes up in wake of exceptional waves

HUGE and unusual waves this week washed up the 44-year-old shipwreck of the Antipolis north of Oudekraal, just before the 12 Apostles Hotel.

The Antipolis, a 25 000-ton Greek oil tanker, was wrecked near Sandy Bay and ran aground off Oudekraal in July 1977.

It became a popular diving site populated by crayfish.

City of Cape Town coastal management’s Gregg Oelofse said they were unable to remove the wreck and warned people not to attempt to climb it or remove debris from it because it was unstable and unsafe.

“It is something that is going to stay there for some time, and we are not able to remove it.”

Lesley Rochat, founder and CEO of AfriOceans and an environmentalist and conservationist, said climate change had contributed to rising sea levels.

“Our coast is historically notorious for big storms, but there is no doubt that climate change impacts on our 3 000km coastline.”