GULF OF MEXICO - An estimated 200 private boats turned out Sunday for the sinking of the LuLu 17. 5 miles south of Perdido Pass in the Gulf of Mexico.

Vince Lucido, President of the Alabama Gulf Coast Reef and Restoration Foundation, raised his arms in victory, thumbs pointing downward, after she slipped beneath the waves with a his and blast of air.

The crew of Walter Marine pulled the plywood plugs and abandoned ship as the stern began taking on water. A cameraman was also onboard and came off the ship as well.

According to Mitch Craft of Down Under Dive Shop, who led the team who initially searched the ship, the LuLu sank according to plan. David Walter of Walter Marine said he hoped the stern would go first, followed by the bow and that she would sit up her hull and not roll over on its side.

 “She is "upright and pretty and the top of the wheelhouse is 60 feet (from the surface) on the dot,” Craft said via text messages.” It couldn't have been set down any better."

The bow slipped underneath the waves in about 10 minutes. The foundation reported on its Facebook page the safety team has clearned the LuLu for diving.

For more ipictures visit: http://www.gulfcoastnewstoday.com/gallery/news/collection_86ef2344-c659-11e2-a1bc-0019bb2963f4.html