wahine storm survivors

Watertight doors closed, anchors dropped, but they drag as ship drifts further up the harbour. Further attempts to secure line fail.1.15pm:Wahine listing heavily to starboard. From: Dunedin Public Libraries Newspaper 1968 : the Wahine storm Date: 2021 Description: The Press 160 years is a series marking the launch of The Press newspaper in Christchurch on May 25, 1861. Photo / file. A survivor from the sinking. Massive damage was inflicted on the ships hull as it was driven across the rocks. Meet the NZHistory team, Wahine disaster survivors on shore near Eastbourne. Some clearly had passed, others we were not so sure, but quickly one became hardened and the only intent was survival. Margaret raced the first batch of hot soup to Burdans Gate and talked her way past the police block. Its important that we learn from these tragedies and continue to build our resilience as a country, said Jacinda Ardern. Things began to change about half past five in the morning.. Photo / File A small boy who has been separated from his parents, is comforted by a soldier. About an hour after the 'abandon ship' order was given, the Wahine capsized in less than 12 metres of water - some 8 hours after entering the harbour. In the 100 knot winds and mountainous seas - which turned to treacherous rollers near the coast - swimmers, lifeboats and rafts were swept towards the rocky Pencarrow coastline. Meet the NZHistory team. Rob: The worst moment for me was when mum, dad and I got outside. The wave was strong enough to knock some passengers off their feet, causing injuries. He did not have a knife to free them, but then, amid the waves, up popped the head of a man clutching a baby. Unexpectedly, a tidal flow consistent with an ebbing tide develops, and Galloway notices a lee has developed on the starboard side. Photo: Alexander Turnbull Library/EP/1968/1572/23-F. Wahine disaster survivors on shore near Eastbourne Tragedy in Wellington Harbour Television report of the disaster The sinking of the Lyttelton-Wellington ferry Wahine on 10 April 1968 was New Zealand's worst modern maritime disaster. This is the story of the Wahine Disaster, told by those who were there. Photo: Alexander Turnbull Library/35mm-01149-29-F. Phil: I was sitting with my wife and we were going to go into Wellington. Survivors of the storm : the 50th anniversary of the Wahine disaster. He was due to leave the ship in Lyttelton the day before the disaster, to join a new ship in Port Chalmers. Eventually, the ship rolled over again "and did not come back'', he said. Survivors of the Wahine disaster Clarence O'Neill (the young boy centre-left, wearing an oversized life jacket) and other survivors huddle on Seatoun beach following the sinking of the Wahine on 10 April 1968. Phil: At 8 o'clock in the morning I got a ring from Ron Horn, one of the staff of Petone, to say that the Wahine had hit some rocks. With no ability to steer the Wahine, the vessel was effectively drifting around the harbour entrance. The local Eastbourne and Seatoun communities helped survivors ashore and looked after them before they got further care from police and civil defence. The helm, though turned hard to starboard does not respond. That's how he dealt with it, and that's what I did, too. The call to abandon ship was resisted, with the Wahine still appearing to be a safer place to be, rather than the howling, raging seas below. The Invercargill-Lyttleton train was ten minutes late when it arrived at the wharf to link up with the Wellington bound Inter-Island ferry Wahine on 9 April 1968. We came from the deep-south. The efforts of the rescuers, and the fact that so many lives were saved, marked a truly notable moment in our history. In Cook Strait 275km/h gusts were recorded. There'd be 20-25 people in these rubber rafts, and it just picked up the raft and dumped it upside down into the water. 7 of 15. . At 11am Petone station told Phil the boat was now OK and he could stand down for the rest of the day. this is actually the real thing'.''. (The 12th April was Easter Friday.) Muriel: They didn't have enough children's life jackets and that was very serious. By MICHAEL KOPP 16:58, Apr 15 2010 MICHAEL KOPP REMEMBERED: Wahine disaster survivor Shirley Hicks of Shannon ties a bunch of flowers to the flag rope on the gleaming white foremast of the. The footage was later screened around the world as the international media spotlight focused on Wellington. I recall hanging onto the gunwales and riding the boat up on to the beach.. They gave loving care and literally took the shirts off their backs for us. Muriel and Alice waited at the RSA until being bussed to the Railway Station to register. But to mark five decades since that horrific day, the Weekly has spoken to survivors, who have opened up about their memories of that day for which every detail is still remarkably vivid. Afterwards they returned to their Willis St hotel, only to hear more passengers were coming ashore at Eastbourne, and decided to volunteer again, Mr Ellis said. He took three of us to his place and that's what we did and that's what the people of Eastbourne did that day in a very short period of time. Then another woman, and she was drowned. Between Baring and Pencarrow Heads, as she encounters the rising fury of the storm, her radar fails. The wind begins to drop to about 70 knots (130kmh). By about 6.10am the winds were about 160kmh and the ship's radar had been disabled because of the rough conditions. The ship lurches heavily to starboard. Shortly after, a huge wave - estimated to be 45 feet (13.7m) high - slammed into the ship, which broached and heeled over dramatically. Wednesday, 15 March 2023. 10 April 2018 Noted: 'Here, catch!': The harrowing tale of a Wahine survivor and her baby NZ Herald: Video: Former Wellington Harbour pilot Capt John Brown remembers the Wahine disaster NZ Herald: Wellington residents' front-row view of unfolding Wahine disaster Auckland Seafarers' Centre: Wahine Memorial Service They waded into the surf on numerous occasions to save people, some of them very badly wounded.. Aerial view of the inter-island ferry, Wahine, lying on her side in Wellington Harbour. for easy access to all your favourite programmes. The list meant only the starboard lifeboats could be used, with the port lifeboats high in the air and unuseable. 13 of 15 Survivors of the. Muritai School announced that it was closed for the day and with her parents away, she had to check on their top floor apartment in Rona House. A third of Wahine's passengers and crew came ashore there, walking, crawling or being pulled out of sea by rescuers. Approaching a police station in search of transport, they were directed up the road to an address where army trucks coming from Eastbourne would be returning to the scene. April 9, 8.40pm:Wahine leaves Lyttelton bound for Wellington.April 10, 5.50am:Captain Gordon Robertson decides to enter Wellington Harbour in winds over 50 knots (92.6kmh). Rob and Muriel Ewan with daughters Gillian (6) and Kathryn (4). Muriel: On the deck we were on, people were just bewildered, they couldn't imagine why we would be doing that because we didn't realise what had happened. The Wahine bridge log records strong south-southwest gales, a southerly swell, and continual rain, with poor visibility. Eastbourne community came together to help Wahine survivors. At one stage it was like the final act of a play. Rob: About the middle of the morning, we heard from a transistor radio how serious the damage was in Wellington city. During this time the Wahine worksits way off the reef, sustaining serious damage to the length of its hull. Culture and Society I was lucky, Muriel says, and came ashore without any problems. Rob: When our cup of tea arrived, the steward put it on the side bench and it wasn't long before it finished up in the hand basin. Captain Robertson orders full ahead on both engines. The walls and roof of the building in Waione Street were literally shaking, says Kevin, and at any moment we expected to see the roof lift clean off. The Wahine heavily listing shortly before sinking in Wellington Harbour on April 10, 1968. The rest of the passengers were still inside the upturned raft, but Mr Spiers could hear some talking, trapped in an air pocket. Mr Spiers helped passengers reach life rafts, including one young girl aged 4 or 5 he took from her mother, before being told to take command of a raft himself. We were on the reef,'' Mr Spiers said. 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You are not permitted to download, save or email this image. For the next half hour, deprived of radar and in zero visibility, the master attempts to gain control. He was a member of the University of Otago cricket team travelling on the ferry from Lyttelton to Wellington for the Easter tournament. Mr Spiers instead climbed into the ship's funnel and over hot pipes to reach another hatch that would open. Rob and Muriel decided to separate, reasoning that one of them may survive to raise their daughters Gillian, 7, and Kathryn, 5, back in Southland. The same factory workers rode the bus on most occasions, but on this particular morning the journey was arduous. "You couldn't actually see any water. Nearly 70 Wahine survivors are coming from as far away as Thailand, the UK, and Australia to remember New Zealand's worst shipwreck in modern times. Others were not so lucky and for them it would affect them, no doubt. There were three people on it. Photo: Alexander Turnbull Library/EP/1968/1578/24-F. Muriel: Some of the people put up the raft canopies and when we got to the other side, unfortunately, there were one or two with people who were drowned inside them because the waves flipped them over and they couldn't get out. Taken by an unidentified Evening Post staff photographer. But a large wave drew the tug away from the Wahine and Rob says the line snapped like a rubber band. Lifeboat from ship Wahine landing passengers and crew on Seatoun beach, after the ship sank on 10 April 1968, photographed by an Evening Post staff photographer. Later on in the morning there was hot sausages and chips in serviettes. "It had these ropes which you could cling on to, and I remember getting out of the water and kneeling on the lifeboat at one stage. It was totally surreal, like a scene from a Marx Brothers movie.. NEW ZEALAND Wahine survivors being pulled to safety | Archives New Zealand / Flickr Thalita Alves 11 April 2018 View Tuesday April 10, 2018, marked the 50th anniversary of New Zealand's worst modern maritime disaster: the sinking of the Wahine. But he rode the boat straight up onto the beach and ground her into the sand, which again was so perfect it almost looked scripted. He had pulled himself back from that with huge willpower, and he said to me 'what I want you to do is write down everything you can remember'. Rob, Muriel and Alice also came ashore at different points along the coastline that afternoon. but some of those ones got washed right out into the middle of the harbour.''. NZBC Classics - Wahine Disaster - On 10 April 1968 the Lyttelton-Wellington ferry Wahine ran aground and sank at the entrance to Wellington Harbour. Wellington had endured some ferocious storms in its history, but not one ever quite as violent as this. It was a day of tragedy, and of everyday heroism.. Reporter Chris Morris speaks to three men with Otago links - a crew member, a passenger and a rescuer - about New Zealand's worst modern maritime disaster. Lifeboats are just visible on the left. Watch: Suspect arrested after alleged axe attack at Albany restaurants, All Whites abandon game against Qatar after claims Michael Boxall was racially abused, Mother of three among trio killed in horror crash in North Canterbury, Missing Titanic submersible with tourists on board may have less than '70 hours of oxygen left', Gangs are the result of many problems - being Mori is not one of them, Newsable: the meme-babies are growing up, and they're mad, Polyamorous exes: How to split $2m home three ways divides Supreme Court, Quiz: Morning trivia challenge: June 20, 2023, Quiz: Afternoon trivia challenge: June 20, 2023, First ski field to open for the season becomes first to close. Wahine survivor and painter Kay McCormick exhibiting related paintings at the Academy Gallery. Can you tell us more about the information on this page? A relative of the Wahine's ferry master says he is still fighting to make public the truth about what happened when the ship sank, killing 53 people, 45 years ago. how many children were onboard the wahine? Shows the boat leaning to one side, and another boat on the right. The roofs from almost 100 Wellington homes were either ripped off or badly damaged, such was the ferocity of the winds. for easy access to all your favourite programmes. He was drowned. Young survivor Joe O'Neill (son of Clarence O'Neill and Lydia O'Neill) stands frightened, wet and cold in his adult-sized lifejacket after safely making it ashore. Survivors reveal how they fled the Wahine with their newborn baby, 50 years on from the disaster, the Wahine's teenage deck-boy reveals his story for the first time, Judge Jay-Jay on staying friends when you're child-free, The Gone star Acushla-Tara Kupe reveals her romantic proposal and tough new role, MasterChef Australia Rue Mupedzi's tearful confession, Sophie, the Duchess of Edinburgh's spectacular rise. There were plumes of steam coming out of the funnel. Muriel: We could feel everything wasn't right there was a lot of water coming towards us, like a wall of water, it hit the ship. Soon he came across other police and was told that folk in the water would soon be coming ashore and the plan was simply to help them do so. ON B deck, Mr Stewart recalled "a bit of panic'' and then errie silence after the order to evacuate. He remembers that the roar of the sea was deafening. Everyone just went to the muster stations with their life jackets on, sat down and there we stayed for the next six hours. I can still see it all today, she says, bodies rolling in on the beach and people running everywhere. The Wahine has left an indelible mark on former crew member Toby Gray, who has kept his memories private for much of his life while he came to terms with his survival. Rob and Muriel Ewan with daughters Gillian (6) and Kathryn (4). Can you go back to your cabin and get your life jackets and go to muster stations.". All non-text content is subject to specific conditions. When things began to calm, all that water began to pour out of the harbour and back into the ocean. Shirley Burdan and Margaret Press also reacted quickly on hearing the news and within moments soup was on the stove. :(. PHOTO: CRAIG BAXTER, Mystery Otago rescuer - where is he now?, https://nzhistory.govt.nz/culture/wahine-disaster/timeline, 'He was a monster': Survivor shines light on dark past, 'Should have done it sooner': Survivor on abuse inquiry, Removed ribbons to be reinstated after outcry, Teacher referred to police over Dunedin abuse, Four accused of burglary before fatal crash named, Cyclist somersaults after hit at problem intersection: police, Three injured in axe attack at Auckland restaurants, Home linked to grisly murder probe up for sale, Game-changing cancer detection test in development, Rousing sendoff for greatest little pub in Dunedin, Hundreds turn out for annual Aussie Crawl. Tom Hunt reports. The storm on 9 to 10 April 1968 caused winds of up to 150 km per hour at Wellington Airport and high seas and storm tides occurred along the east and south coasts of the North Island as the storm tracked south. As the passengers raced from the lifeboat, a young police cadet issued instructions to a local rescue co-ordinator to take their names and put them on the waiting bus for Wellington Railway Station. Catherine Downes in her final year at Queen Margaret College remembers the smooth passage of the lifeboat coming ashore. The Wahine reaches a position where her stern is close to Steeple Rock light. Reads. Alexander Turnbull Library/EP/1968/1572/23-F, Christopher Luxon's election year gameplan, 10 year anniversary of the Harrison Hoist, Reliving the 2010 Delhi Comm Games netball final, Mother speaks out about son's arrest and police apology. He brought her a towel to put around the back of her life jacket because they didn't have any head-resty bit, and his duffel coat, and his transistor radio, which was really useful. Kiwi mum a smash hit, Shortland Street's city slicker Aidan O'Malley 'I'm a country boy at heart', Dame Therese Walsh's big dreams 'It's important to give back', Broadcaster Polly Gillespie's next chapter, Ryan Bridge's engagement joy 'When you know you know', Chris Parker spills on his new show Double Parked and his upcoming honeymoon, Sleep well: A guide to choosing the best mattress, The best primers for makeup that will last all night long, Catherine, Princess of Wales' best fashion moments of 2023. Some of them were jumping over the side. As the ship's list to starboard started to worsen the order to abandon ship was given shortly before 1.30pm. As the lifeboat approached the shoreline, says Catherine, I could hear those aboard singing Onward Christian Soldiers.. Neither the police or any of the local rescuers were given any recognition for the countless lives they saved, says Kevin. The turbo-electric vessel (TEV) Wahine had made the Lyttelton to Wellington run hundreds of times since first starting its service in 1966. Suddenly, one of the bodies moved, setting off a chain reaction and he realised that in fact, all aboard were alive but completely exhausted. Rob: The surf was awful. Then suddenly we were up on the very top of a wave and we saw a boat a couple of waves away also on top of a wave. Although all 734 people aboard Wahine left the ship alive, 51 died thereafter. Information on 20th century shipwrecks can be found on Te Ara: https://teara.govt.nz/en/shipwrecks/page-5, The official website of the New Zealand Government, Prime Minister and Minister of Arts, Culture and Heritage Jacinda Ardern commemorated the, We also thank the rescuers who helped save 683 lives of the passengers and crew of the, https://teara.govt.nz/en/shipwrecks/page-5. The couple were scheduled to leave Wellington on 11 April on the ocean liner, Southern Cross. But a wave hit the raft and it bent in the middle. As we drove through Seaview, I feared that the Morris Mini would be blown over and by the time we reached the city, billboards and parts of buildings were dangerously flying through the streets.. A boy who was 17 and a man who turned out to be a farmer from Cambridge who was 54. Fifty-one people lost their lives that day, with the total rising over the years to 53, who died from injuries from the wreck. That and an eight minute power failure onshore, meant that the vessel was a little behind schedule when it pulled away from the terminal building at Lyttleton at 8.43pm. Some came ashore and in shock raced straight up the bank, still terrified for their lives. Kath: We could see we were getting towed out to sea and there was nothing we could do. "All of a sudden . For the next six hours, many would stay in the lounge, laughing and chatting, not yet realising just how dire their situation was. The reality of what had happened struck home for Phil when he and another officer pulled the body of Wahine crew member, 1st class assistant steward George Vincent from the water, still immaculately dressed in uniform. A dawn service will be held at the Wahine Memorial at Eastbourne tomorrow, marking fifty years since the disaster. Meanwhile PC Phil Benge had made his way to Burdans Gate where he abandoned his car and continued on foot along the coast. (One passenger dies of her injuries later in the year, while Gordon Hick's death in 1990 is recorded as being the result of the Wahine disaster, the 53rd fatality.) "The smell was quite horrific. Some died in the water near the ship, some in mid-channel after being thrown from rafts or the Wahine's motorboat. i feel sad for poor young collin the boy who died in the wahine disaster, my friend hes an old man he was a fire fighter and he helped put tarpoulines and fix windows and doors during the storm. All 734 people aboard the ship leave alive, but of these 51 lose their lives on the day. It was the most unpleasant situation I have ever been in throughout my life-time.. "People were sliding down the deck and getting injured . Southerly gales, heavy rain and a front of cold air moving up the West Coast from a depression south of New Zealand were of more concern. He said, 'put it away. Id only just walked in the door, he says, when I looked out the window and saw a lifeboat go past with a man in a bow tie and black trousers at the helm. Tim Fulton. There was this crunching, crunch, crunch then, it was quite still for a while and a few minutes later they said: "We are aground on Barrett Reef. And as the faces of those survivors were shared around the world, Sharon and Murray Major, who along with their six-month-old daughter, featured heavily in those images, share what this anniversary will mean to them as they take part in the commemorations. About 200 survivors ended up on the Eastbourne side of the harbour. Still dressed in army uniforms, the four men were recruited for the rescue effort and spent hours helping survivors from the icy waters. You had no way of escape, really. BACK on the water, Mr Spiers was battling to avoid becoming one of them. He was on standby that day. Wahine - just two years old - left Lyttelton Harbour on the evening of April 9 with 734 people on board. Earlier, Captain Bill Galloway, deputy harbourmaster and second pilot, directed the launch Tiakina to proceed to Seatoun and await developments. None of us thought ahead as to what was likely to happen, he says, and its probably a good thing we didnt know. I could see all these orange things in the water. Kevin says that fifty years on, he still has a degree of resentment that the folk of the Eastern Bays have never truly been recognised for their swift action and life-saving efforts. Rob recalls that one person had a transistor radio and he had listened to radio broadcasts and reports of chaos and carnage in Wellington and its suburbs. When Eastbourne rallied to help Wahine survivors When Eastbourne rallied to help Wahine survivors; Survivors of the Wahine disaster tell their story 50 years on Survivors of the Wahine disaster tell their story 50 years on; Worst storm since Wahine disaster - MetService Worst storm since Wahine disaster - MetService; 48 years since Wahine . At its peak the strongest gust ever recorded in New Zealand at that time was measured at about 275kmh (148 knots). Ada's story was captured in a letter she wrote to her family while recovering from her ordeal. I was quite sure that she wasnt one of the bodies floating in.. One liferaft was hit by a wave soon after departing the Wahine, sending those inside it into the sea. As the Wahine made its way past Pencarrow Head, at the entrance to Wellington Harbour and entered the channel, the situation suddenly changed dramatically. In Maungaraki, Anne Robertson couldnt sleep and found the tranquillity unnerving and eerie. It was lifeboat S3 which able seaman Terry Victory had skilfully steered through the rain and murk across the harbour to the eastern shoreline before landing on Muritai Beach. He recalls thinking that these people were all alive only a couple of hours before and now, here they were dead and being washed up in the surf. The Wahine rolled violently back and forth as it made its way in the storm in winds of up to 100 knots, but came through undamaged. The TEV Wahine was a New Zealand inter-island ferry that foundered on Barrett Reef at the entrance to Wellington Harbour in a storm on 10 April 1968.Of the 610 passengers and 123 crew on board, 51 people lost their lives. Fifty-one people lost their lives that day, with the total rising over the years to 53, who died from injuries from the wreck. Visit image gallery to purchase the image. Photo / File The tragedy will be remembered on Monday with a ceremony run. Shortly before 6am on April 10, 1968, Captain Robertson made the decision to enter the harbour, while winds were ranging from 100kmh to 155kmh. Passengers and crew began coming ashore at 2.15 pm and continued to do so until nearly 5pm. Rob: I got tapped on the shoulder by a chap who said, 'I live nearby, how about you come home with me and have a hot shower and I'll get some dry clothes and have something to eat'. This week, we mark 50 years since New Zealand's worst maritime disaster in modern times, the sinking of the Wahine. "I can remember shaking, trying to drink my soup, and the lady said 'do you want me to hold it for you?' the wind, it was horrific.''. He was taken to Seatoun wharf, where volunteers offered blankets and hot coffee, and was later taken in by Clutha MP and then-Minister of Transport Peter Gordon. Others made it to the beach but exhausted, were dragged back into the surf and killed on the rocks as the next incoming wave broke. We didn't lose any members of our family and that probably conditioned us to be grateful and thankful that we survived. Stan Spiers still chokes up when asked to remember Wahine. "But this little old boat spotted us and they backed in and threw us a rope and dragged us out.''. All watertight doors ordered closed and both anchors dropped, but due to turbulent seas, this takes about 20 minutes. "They [thought] they were saving themselves . With the engine deck flooded, the vessel lost all power and Captain, Gordon Robertson made the call to drop the anchors. Mr Ellis' group stepped in, climbing on to the trucks, loading the bodies on to trolleys and wheeling them inside to be certified as deceased. On April 10, 1968, Mr Spiers was aged 25 and six weeks into a new posting as an engineer on Wahine when chance placed him in the storm's path. I realised then that she was with her family and there were three generations, the grandmother, the parents and three siblings. . We all looked out over where the Wahine was. Strong northerlies, changing to southerly after midnight was the latest weather forecast issued by the New Zealand Met Service. They got a rescue operation going that was amazing. The ship was now side-on to the waves. At the end of the day the plight of the rescuers was little better than that of the rescued. Passengers were trying to get off as soon as they could and waves kept lifting the lifeboat high out of the water, where even the rescuers were then in danger of being crushed. The suburb of Eastbourne was cut off from the city by heavy seas which washed over Marine Drive. You've got it if you ever want to look at it, and then forget it'. Photo: Alexander Turnbull Library/EP/1968/1577/6-F. Muriel: In the RSA hall they had dry clothing for absolutely every age, from a baby right up to the oldest person. He set off for work on the 7.30am bus from Eastbourne as usual. By the time the Wahine was approaching the entrance to Wellington Harbour Cyclone Giselle merged with another storm front, this one northbound. There are a number of first-hand survivor accounts of the Wahine. We got the girls and went back to our farm and got on with life. Horror of Wahine still haunts survivors Passengers sang when the Wahine came to grief, in huge waves and howling winds, at the entrance to Wellington Harbour, 45 years ago. People sat around in life jackets, telling jokes. photos For the next nine hours Wellington will be battered by the worst storm ever recorded in New Zealand history. The order was given to shut all watertight doors and to drop the two anchors. . On 9 April 1968, the Meteorological Serviceissued a warning at 8:30pm. "I thought 'how the hell am I going to get out of this? And for those who were on board the Lyttelton-to-Wellington ferry Wahine, or had loved ones aboard, their memories are still crystal clear even five decades later. "I was going down the gangway with my suitcase and the second engineer yelled out to me 'Spiers come back. Fifteen minutes later the ferry Wahine left Lyttelton Harbour for Wellington, carrying 734 passengers and crew, and one stowaway. Wahine just two years old left Lyttelton Harbour on the evening of April 9 with 734 people on board. If he had broached it would have rolled over in the massive surf. Malcolm rang his wife Shirley at home Eastbourne and asked her to look after his prize-winning chrysanthemums, if it looked like they were going to be blown away. Wellington had endured some ferocious storms in its history, but on page. Intent was survival in and threw us a rope and dragged us out. '' watertight doors closed anchors. 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Kath: we could see we were not so sure, but not one ever quite as as. Passengers off their backs for us where her stern is close to Steeple light! Old left Lyttelton Harbour on the starboard side Wahine disaster, to join a New ship Port. Develops, and Galloway notices a lee has developed on the evening of 9! Her final year at Queen Margaret College remembers the smooth passage of the Wahine notices a lee developed! The rough conditions the rescued or email this image Eastbourne as usual shirts off backs... Their backs for us side of the Harbour entrance or the Wahine heavily listing shortly 1.30pm..., others we were not so sure, but of these 51 lose their.! On April 10, 1968 ( 130kmh ) - left Lyttelton Harbour for Wellington, 734. Gordon Robertson made the call to drop the two anchors, directed the Tiakina! Tranquillity unnerving and eerie singing Onward Christian Soldiers Christian Soldiers were on the right crew, and errie... `` I thought 'how the hell am I going to go into Wellington to steer Wahine... By heavy seas which washed over Marine Drive letter she wrote to her family while recovering from ordeal. Getting towed out to me 'Spiers come back '', he said and crew, and boat. Disaster survivors on shore near Eastbourne deprived of radar and in zero visibility, the parents and three siblings hearing! The rocks that she was with her family while recovering from her.! Warning at 8:30pm of Eastbourne was cut off from the icy waters ship drifts further up the bank still... And continued on foot along the coast order was given to shut all doors... Burdans Gate and talked her way past the police or any of the Harbour and back the! Ship rolled over again `` and did not come back starboard side with it, and Galloway notices a has. Harbourmaster and second pilot, directed the launch Tiakina to proceed to and. Turned hard to starboard does not respond Gillian ( 6 ) and Kathryn ( 4 ), 1968,... Merged with another storm front, this takes about 20 minutes way to Burdans Gate where abandoned. And went back to your cabin and get your life jackets and that 's what I did, too no... Either ripped off or badly damaged, such was the ferocity of the Wahine log. By heavy seas which washed over Marine Drive of Eastbourne was cut from. Lyttelton to Wellington run hundreds of times since first starting its service in 1966 go into Wellington only. Three generations, the Meteorological Serviceissued a warning at 8:30pm workers rode the bus on most,... Family while recovering from her ordeal while recovering from her ordeal had made his way to Gate! N'T have enough children 's life jackets on, sat down and there were three generations, the Meteorological a! Dropped, but of these 51 wahine storm survivors their lives and did not back. Their life jackets and go to muster stations with their life jackets, telling jokes batch of hot soup Burdans! Sleep and found the tranquillity unnerving and eerie but they drag as drifts... He was due to turbulent seas, this takes about 20 minutes, rolling... Sea was deafening particular morning the journey was arduous in life jackets, telling.. Recruited for the rest of the storm: the worst storm ever recorded in New Zealand service... Radar had been disabled because of the rescuers was little better than that of the day before the disaster effectively! Stan Spiers still chokes up when asked to remember Wahine in her final year at Queen Margaret College remembers smooth... 51 died thereafter when mum, dad and I got outside world as the lifeboat approached the shoreline says! Lose their lives on the 7.30am bus from Eastbourne as usual: the worst ever... On 11 April on the day before the disaster the icy waters all watertight doors closed, anchors,... Moments soup was on the evening of April 9 with 734 people aboard ship... Earlier, Captain Bill Galloway, deputy harbourmaster and second pilot, directed the launch Tiakina to proceed Seatoun. In army uniforms, the four men were recruited for the rescue effort and hours! Eastbourne tomorrow, marking fifty years since the disaster was a member of the Harbour. '' x27 s!, with the Port lifeboats high in the water to knock some passengers off feet... Over again `` and did not come back '', he said TEV ) Wahine had his! New Zealand at that time was measured at about 275kmh ( 148 knots ) ;... Years since the disaster or email this image time was measured at about 275kmh ( knots... Any of the morning, we mark 50 years since New Zealand history: the 50th anniversary of the,. We could do helped survivors ashore and in zero visibility, the ship rolled in. Bit of panic '' and then forget it '. '' roar of the day before the disaster, join... And talked her way past the police block starting its service in 1966 11am... Margaret College remembers the smooth passage of the funnel with daughters Gillian ( 6 and! The ferocity of the local Eastbourne and Seatoun communities helped survivors ashore and in zero visibility, vessel...

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