New Zealand defense experts were left puzzled after a Navy ship that was once said to be "top of the line" capsized and sank in a fiery blaze Saturday.
The HMNZS Manawanui reportedly struck a reef off Samoa while battling powerful waves and currents, leading the ship to run aground before eventually sinking, according to the New Zealand Herald.
After about an hour of trying to get the $100 million vessel off of the reef, Commander Yvonne Gray made the call to evacuate. All 75 people were able to make it into lifeboats in order to be rescued, and just two required hospital visits after one reportedly had a dislocated shoulder and the other had an injured back. About a dozen others had minor injuries such as bruises, the New Zealand news outlet reported.
Just watch the HMNZS Manawanui burn and sink. Sad day for NZ and locals pic.twitter.com/XBMNfC3XJ1
— Dave Poole (@pooliecoast) October 5, 2024
The HMNZS Manawanui was commissioned in 2019 after being bought used from Norway, as reported by The Post. Then-defense minister Ron Mark told the outlet he was struggling to understand how this had happened to a "top of the line" vessel.
"It's confusing how she's in this situation right now," Mark told The Post. "She's a hydrographic ship. She has some of the best equipment on board for surveying the sea floor. I'm keenly interested to know what brought the circumstances out."
The country's current defense minister, Judith Collins, said at a press conference Sunday that the ship "is pretty much gone," The Post reported. She continued to say, however, that it was "just a bad day" as opposed to "a truly terrible day" since there were no casualties.
🚨SEA RESCUE UPDATE.Our fire rescue team responded to the Manawanui vessel navy crew in distress, working from last night until this morning. Fortunately, no one was heavily injured and no lives...
Photos of the rescue were shared to Facebook by the Samoa Fire and Emergency Services Authority shows the ship's personnel being assessed and looked after on the beach. The department captioned the post, "Fortunately, no one was heavily injured and no lives were lost. We're proud to say WE SAVED THEM."
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