Blue Water Wreck (Mabini Padre)
Large Philippine fishing trawler (Mabini Padre) that caught fire and sank in 1981 with no casualties. She lies on her port side at about 35 m with the starboard side rising to about 24 m, covered in Dendronephthya soft corals, and has the best visibility of the Labuan wrecks (10-35 m, reportedly up to 40 m on exceptional days). The hull can be entered aft of the bridge and divers can swim through the stern trawl chute to see the single propeller. The most remote and deepest of the four (about 34 km from Labuan). Direction names in sources (northeast vs northwest of Kuraman) disagree.
Facts
- Region: Labuan wrecks – Malaysia
- Area: Labuan wrecks (southwest of Labuan)
- Depth: 24–35 m
- Level: advanced
- Current: moderate
- Type: wreck
- Coordinates: 5.290667, 114.9975
- Highlights: soft coral, tuna, jack, sea fan, reef shark
- Permit: The four wrecks lie in zones gazetted as heritage protection areas by the National Heritage Department (reported as protected since 2011); operators obtained special approval to run dives, so dive only with a licensed Labuan operator. Labuan Marine Park fee for non-Malaysians reportedly RM 30 per person (usually quoted separately by operators; confirm when booking). Removing artefacts is not allowed.
- Issuer / contact: Jabatan Warisan Negara (National Heritage Department) / Labuan Marine Park (Department of Fisheries) – no official contact found by this research
- Tips: Advanced Open Water and deep experience; current can be unpredictable and air management is critical. Rust-out risk in machinery spaces. Longest boat ride of the four.