SS ''Varvassi'' is a wrecked ship just off

the Needles The Needles is a row of three stacks of chalk that rise about out of the sea off the western extremity of the Isle of Wight in the English Channel, United Kingdom, close to Alum Bay and Scratchell's Bay, and part of Totland, the westernmo ...

lighthouse, which is at the western end of the

Isle of Wight The Isle of Wight ( ) is a Counties of England, county in the English Channel, off the coast of Hampshire, from which it is separated by the Solent. It is the List of islands of England#Largest islands, largest and List of islands of England#Mo ...

. The ship crashed about 150 metres west of the lighthouse. The Isle of Wight is off the South coast of England, near

Southampton Southampton () is a port city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire in southern England. It is located approximately south-west of London and west of Portsmouth. The city forms part of the South Hampshire built-up area, which also covers Po ...

. ''Varvassi'' was a 3,875-ton

Greek Greek may refer to: Greece Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group. *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family. **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor ...

merchant steamship that was wrecked on the Needles rocks in 1947. It was carrying a cargo of

tangerine The tangerine is a type of citrus fruit that is orange in color. Its scientific name varies. It has been treated as a separate species under the name ''Citrus tangerina'' or ''Citrus'' × ''tangerina'', or treated as a variety of ''Citrus retic ...

s from Algiers to Southampton. The ship became wrecked after an engine failure in stormy weather, and drifted onto the rocks. When an attempt was made to haul the ship off the rocks, she flooded and sank. All 36 crew were rescued unharmed, as was approximately one third of the cargo of tangerines and wine. There are still remains of the wreck lying just below the surface. Some parts of the wreck can be seen at very low tides. The wreck constitutes a hazard to small craft that attempt to sail too close to the lighthouse. Any race around the Island have to face the obstacle of the SS Varvassi. Yacht racers see the passage between the crashed SS Varvassi and Goose Rock as a shortcut, many however miscalculate this.

References

External links

* Shipwrecks in the English Channel Shipwrecks of the Needles Wreck diving sites in England Maritime incidents in 1947 Steamships of Greece 1914 ships {{ship-stub