New artificial reef in place

The 176-foot-long Great Wicomico is now an artificial reef about 13 miles south of Mississippi's Horn Island in the Gulf of Mexico. The ship entered service in 1945 and became part of the Omega Protein fishing fleet in 1960. Omega Protein, which operates a pogy fishing fleet out of Moss Point, Miss., donated the ship for the Mississippi Department of Marine Resources Artificial Reef Bureau. Artificial reefs create habitats for sea life. Mississippi's artificial reef program began in 1999. (Source: Mississippi Press, 11/25/09)