Sugar Wreck (MV Union Star 17)
The Sugar Wreck is a sunken cargo ship of about 90 m, lying on its side at roughly 18–20 m west of Perhentian Kecil, around 30 minutes by boat. It sank in a monsoon and has little coral cover yet, but fish life is dense: lionfish, scorpionfish, bamboo sharks and barracuda gather around and inside it. Parts of the wreck can be penetrated by experienced divers. Sources disagree on the year it sank (2000 vs. 2020) and on the exact position.
Facts
- Region: Malaysia – East Coast North
- Area: Perhentian Islands
- Depth: 10–25 m
- Level: intermediate
- Current: low
- Type: wreck
- Coordinates: 5.8917, 102.6999 (approximate)
- Highlights: lionfish, scorpionfish, bamboo shark, barracuda, cobia, grouper, snapper, stonefish
- Tips: Often crowded in high season; visibility can be 10–20 m. Penetration only with a guide and suitable training. PADI lists a different position (5.883 N, 102.612 E), which is further west.