New Zealand naval vessel HMNZS Manawanui lies at the bottom of the ocean just a few kilometres off the coast of Siumu and now poses a possible ecological disaster.
The HMNZS Manawanui sank after running aground on the southwest coast of Upolu Island and has left local fishermen and residents of Sa’anapu-tai grappling with the aftermath.
Accident is still unknown.
The HMNZS Manawanui hit the reef on Saturday night and then started tilting. It eventually caught fire and sank.noting that the cause of the accident is still unknown.
The ship was deployed a week ago and was on a journey to chart Samoa’s waters and produce the latest charts. The last charts were produced in 1987.
It is noteworthy that HMNZS Manawanui, a specialist diving and hydrographic vessel of the New Zealand Navy,
Unsuccessful attempts
It is noteworthy that There are no reports yet on what happened and how the ship ran aground on the reef. According to reports, unsuccessful attempts were made to get the ship off the reef before it began to lean to one side.
Successful rescue.
The passengers and crew were evacuated using four life rafts and two rigid hull inflatable boats,
New Zealand’s Chief of Navy Rear Admiral Garin Golding told media in New Zealand. This effort was reinforced with local authorities arriving and ensuring a successful rescue.
Strong currents
It took the first survivors five hours to get to shore because of the strong currents and high waves. It was reported that one of the small boats “flipped on the reef” during the rescue attempt and those who were on board walked to land.
Samoa’s fire commissioner, Tanuvasa Petoni, said the ship caught fire and sank in the morning after a successful rescue operation for all passengers, according to the British newspaper, The Guardian reported
75 passengers
He confirmed that 75 passengers who were on board the ship were rescued and left it in lifeboats, saying, “They are all on land… They are safe and well except for a few individuals who suffered some minor injuries, so we treated them on the spot and transferred them to the hospital.
“ Videos and photos circulated by local media showed images of the evacuation of passengers and crew from the ship, which appeared in the images with smoke rising from it and half of it underwater
The New Zealand Defence Force said the cause of the ship’s grounding was unknown and would require further investigation. It said the ship later capsized and was under the sea by 9 a.m. local time.
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Minor injuries
Navy chief Admiral Garren Golding told a news conference in Auckland that a plane would leave for Samoa on Sunday to return the rescued crew and passengers to New Zealand. He added that some of those rescued had suffered minor injuries, including from walking across coral reefs.
“I know what happened will take a long time to process,” Defence Minister Judith Collins told a news conference.
HMNZS Manawanui, the New Zealand Navy’s specialist diving and hydrographic vessel, has conducted a range of specialist diving, rescue and survey missions around New Zealand and across the south-west Pacific.
