New Zealand navy ship sinks off Samoa, all 75 aboard safe

The Manila Times

New Zealand navy ship sinks off Samoa, all 75 aboard safe  A Royal New Zealand Navy vessel ran aground and sank off Samoa but all 75 crew and passengers on board were safe, New Zealand Defense Minister Judith Collins said on Sunday, October 6.  Manawanui, the navy's specialist dive and hydrographic vessel, ran aground near the southern coast of Upolu on Saturday, October 5, night as it was conducting a reef survey, Collins and New Zealand’s Chief of Navy, Rear Admiral Garin Golding said.  The cause of the grounding was unknown and would need further investigation, Collins said. New Zealand's Navy is already working at reduced capacity with three of its nine ships idle due to personnel shortages.  TVNZ / NEW ZEALAND DEFENCE FORCE VIDEO  Subscribe to The Manila Times Channel - https://tmt.ph/YTSubscribe  Visit our website at https://www.manilatimes.net    Follow us:  Facebook - https://tmt.ph/facebook  Instagram - https://tmt.ph/instagram  Twitter - https://tmt.ph/twitter  DailyMotion - https://tmt.ph/dailymotion    Subscribe to our Digital Edition - https://tmt.ph/digital    Check out our Podcasts:  Spotify - https://tmt.ph/spotify  Apple Podcasts - https://tmt.ph/applepodcasts  Amazon Music - https://tmt.ph/amazonmusic  Deezer: https://tmt.ph/deezer  Tune In: https://tmt.ph/tunein   #TheManilaTimes  #worldnews  #navyship  #newzealand

Transcript

00:00I can confirm at 6.40am today, the ship was listing heavily and smoke was visible from the ship.

00:08At 9am, it was known to have capsized and is now below the surface.

00:15At this stage, the exact cause of the grounding is unknown and this will need further investigation.

00:22I can confirm there were 75 people on board at the time the ship ran aground,

00:28including seven civilians from scientific agencies and four foreign military personnel.

00:34There will obviously be an inquiry, a court of inquiry, to establish exactly what caused this incident.

00:41I look forward to pinpointing the cause so that we can learn from it and avoid a repeat.

00:46The immediate focus right now is on mitigating the environmental impacts

00:51and salvaging what is left of the Manawanui, if that is possible.

00:55It's a really sad day for the Navy.

00:58Can you elaborate on your thoughts?

01:01Well, it's really sad. I mean, you can see people here, they're not happy.

01:04It's really sad, but everyone came through and that, I have to say,

01:11is down to the professionalism, the training and their own courage.

01:18Look, they're undertaking a survey of an area that I understand had not been surveyed since 1987.

01:26And that means, and since then, there have been hurricanes and tsunami and all sorts of things.

01:34So this was work that needed to be done.

01:37And, you know, look, I think the main thing is nobody lost their lives.

01:44And that is actually something of a triumph, frankly, given the very, very difficult circumstances.

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