The Elhawi Star was built n 1957 in the German shipyard Stulcken & Sohn for the client A. Kirsten & Co. from Hamburg a motor ship was built under the name of Valeria. The Valeria changed several owners and was given different names, until in 1981 the Saudi Arabian Elhawi Shipping Company from Jeddah bought it and changed its name again to the Elhawi Star.
On the morning of 12th October 1982 the Elhawi Star was moored along the Sušak port breakwater where port workers were loading of its cargo. At 15.15hrs. with the help of the tugboats the Beli Kamik and the Aries the ship slowly left the Porto Baroš basin (Croatia). Whilst pulling out of Sušak port the towline snapped and so a new rope was lowered from the ship. When the ship was some metres away from the main breakwater, it suddenly began to lean to starboard, so much so that after just a few minutes the sea was touching the main deck. The connection to the tugboat was cut at the moment when the ship was almost completely lying on its right side. The harnesses of the deck cargo broke and the timber and planks fell from the deck into the sea. It sank at 15.42hrs., only 27 minutes after leaving the quayside and lay on its right side on the bottom.
The wreck on the seabed is at a depth of 42 metres.
