HMNZS Manawanui sinking: Black box salvaged, oil sheen on water visible but being dispersed by waves

The New Zealand Defence Force has salvaged the black box from the sunken wreck of the HMNZS Manawanui in Samoa to understand the circumstances leading to it running aground.

Diving crews recovered the voyage data recorder today, Radio New Zealand has reported. Diving teams have also begun assessing the area to understand the environmental impacts and necessary clean-up.

A “light” oil sheen from the Manawanui’s initial capsizing was being carried away by wind and waves yesterday, Maritime Component Commander Commodore Shane Arndell said in a statement last evening.

Experts from Maritime New Zealand and Massey University have been helping the New Zealand Defence Force (NZDF) with the response to environmental concerns. There are 28 NZDF personnel in Samoa working with the Samoan Government as part of the effort.

The stricken HMNZS Manawanui with smoke coming from it. Photo / Profile Boats

Maritime New Zealand’s oil spill response equipment has been deployed, along with remote-operated vehicles to establish the debris field.

Arndell said, “our personnel have begun clearing flotsam from the beach area and environmental assessments and clean-up activities are under way”.

The wreckage is visible only 30cm below the surface and has been declared a prohibited area by Samoan officials.

Video footage was recorded yesterday of a sea turtle struggling to swim in thick, brown oil on the water surface near where the vessel sank.

The NZDF earlier said almost 1000 tonnes of diesel was on board the Manawanui before it sank.

Seventy-five people were rescued after the Manawanui grounded on a reef on Saturday and caught fire and sank on Sunday. A court of inquiry has been set up to investigate the lead-up to the incident.

Two people were hospitalised – one with a dislocated shoulder and one with an injured back. Another 12-15 people suffered minor cuts and abrasions.

The sailors and passengers arrived home just before midnight Monday. They were given welfare support and were reunited with their families yesterday afternoon, most dressed in civies and carrying black rubbish bags.

Sailors from the HMNZS Manawanui arrive home in New Zealand after their doomed voyage. Photo / New Zealand Defence Force

Commander Yvonne Gray was in charge of the $100 million New Zealand naval ship.

Attempts to get the vessel off the reef were unsuccessful and when it began to list at 7.52pm, Gray decided to evacuate the ship.

Gray has called the disaster her “very worst imagining became a reality”.

She said her team “responded in exactly the way I needed them to”.

“They acted with commitment, with comradeship and, above all, with courage,” she said in an NZDF statement last night.

Raphael Franks is an Auckland-based reporter who covers breaking news. He joined the Herald as a Te Rito cadet in 2022.

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