The Navy ship New ZealandHMNZS Manawanui, ran aground and burned on a reef off the coast of Samoa due to a series of human errors, according to the preliminary conclusions of a Military Court of Inquiry.
All 75 crew evacuated safely, but the specialized diving and hydrographic vessel, which had been in service since 2019, was declared lost following the incident in October.
“He autopilot was not deactivated when it should have beenwhich led the ship to maintain its course towards land. This was the result of a series of human errors“, explained the head of the New Zealand Navy, Rear Admiral Garin Goldingduring a press conference in Auckland this Friday.
Golding added that personnel in control of the ship mistakenly believed that a failure in the thruster system was causing the problems and did not check whether the ship was under manual control.
The shipwreck occurred 1.6 kilometers off the coast of Uboluin Samoa, while HMNZS Manawanui carried out a hydrographic survey on the reef.
According to the Court of Inquiry’s preliminary report, the errors began on the bridge, where the crew did not realize that the autopilot was active.
“The muscle memory of the person in control should have led to checking the panel to verify if it was in autopilot mode”Golding explained.
The investigation identified multiple factors that contributed to the accident, including lack of proper trainingdeficiencies in supervision, planning and risk assessment problems.
The full report has not yet been published, but the Court is expected to continue its analysis into the first quarter of next year.
The head of the Navy confirmed that three members of the crew face possible disciplinary processes: the officer in charge of the ship at the time of the accident, a supervising officer and the ship’s commander.
Golding did not reveal the names of those involved, but stressed: “I want to assure the New Zealand public that we will learn from this situation and that it is up to me, as head of the Navy, to regain their trust.”
In addition to the internal investigation, Golding announced that specialized teams will be sent from New Zealand to Samoa to monitor and remove fuel and other contaminants that could pose an environmental risk.
According to the authorities, the majority of ship’s diesel burned in firealthough a slow leak persists that is being monitored by divers. “No significant environmental damage has been reported so far.”Golding stated.
The incident has raised concerns not only about the environmental risks in Samoa’s coastal region, but also the impact on the reputation of the New Zealand Navy. “This has had an impact on our reputation. “We will take responsibility, we will fix it and we will learn from it.”Golding noted.
The sinking of the HMNZS Manawanui marks the first time since the Second World War that New Zealand loses a ship at sea.
On the other hand, the shipwreck also unleashed criticism on social networks, where some users misogynistically attacked the ship’s captain for being a woman. In response, New Zealand’s Defense Minister strongly condemned sexist comments and stressed that such criticism has no place in a modern society.
New Zealand has so far not revealed plans to remove the ship’s wreckage from the reef.although environmental monitoring continues and the specialized team is expected to leave this week to remove the remaining contaminants.
(With information from AP)
