Wellington [New Zealand], November 30: A New Zealand military court has released preliminary findings into the sinking of a navy ship carrying 75 people last month.
According to the above investigation results, the naval ship HMNZS Manawanui was switched to autopilot mode before it capsized and sank off the coast of Samoa.
Crew members lost control of the Manawanui on October 5 while conducting a hydrographic survey off the Samoan island of Upolu.
"The direct cause of the grounding has been determined to be a series of human errors, which means the ship's autopilot remained active when it should have been disengaged," New Zealand Navy Chief of Staff Garin Golding said in a press release on November 29, according to Business Insider.
Mr Golding added that the crew did not realise the ship was still on autopilot and attributed the ship's failure to respond to changes in course to a problem with the propulsion controls.
They attempted to change course several times, but the ship continued on its course until it hit a reef off Samoa at 11 mph and traveled another 2,000 feet until it ran aground, according to the statement.
All 75 crew members and passengers were evacuated 30 minutes after the ship ran aground and before a series of "catastrophic" fires broke out and the ship sank the following morning, according to the statement.
The second phase of the investigation will look at other factors that contributed to the sinking of the Manawanui.
According to a series of updates on its website, the New Zealand Defence Force has been working to safely remove and dispose of fuel and contaminants from the Manawanui.
The HMNZS Manawanui was built by the New Zealand government in 2003 at a cost of NZD 103 million (VND 1,570 billion), and was put into operation in 2019. This ship is used for many diving, salvage and survey activities around New Zealand and the southwest Pacific region .
Source: Thanh Nien Newspaper
