Boat found drifting towards Cook Strait power cables raised from sea, sits in Lower Hutt marina
Wednesday, 21 April 2021
A shipwreck that was drifting at the edge of the Marlborough Sounds has been raised, and it now awaits its fate at Seaview Marina in Lower Hutt.
On Wednesday, marine specialist company Seaworks Limited lifted the boat from the water so insurers, Farmers Mutual Group, could assess the damage.
The boat has been on quite a journey. On Saturday, emergency services were called to the 11.8-metre launch boat as it began to sink near Ngāwhatu Kai-ponu/The Brothers Islands around noon.
Three people were on board at the time and were rescued by a Coastguard Marlborough boat. They had no injuries and were taken to Picton.
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Authorities lost track of the launch, called Kahu, until it was struck by a commercial fishing boat about 16 kilometres away, near Cape Jackson, at 10pm.
It then drifted towards Transpower’s underwater electricity and telecommunications cables in Cook Strait, before it was spotted by seamen and towed to Wellington.
Seaview Marina Limited’s chief executive, Alan McLellan said the impact of the fishing vessel caused significant damage to the 1960s built Wooden Bridge Decker launch and would be written off.
“It’s a shame to see,” McLellan said.
“There’s just not many of the traditional boat builders who have the expertise to repair it well. It really is a lost art.”