The New Zealand navy has insisted a female captain’s gender was not to blame for the sinking of a warship.
The HMNZS Manawanui caught fire and then capsized after running aground a nautical mile off the Samoan island of Upolu on Saturday night while surveying a reef.
It was the first time New Zealand had lost a military ship since World War II.
All 75 people aboard the specialized ocean diving and imaging ship, including seven scientists and four foreign military personnel, were evacuated and rescued early Sunday, and officials are investigating the cause of the incident and how it could damage the local marine environment.
However, since Saturday, the ship’s captain, Commander Yvonne Gray, who was born in Britain and previously served in the UK Royal Navy, has been inundated with sexist trolling online.
New Zealand Defense Minister Judith Collins defended the captain in the face of the negativity: “The only thing we already know that was not the cause is the sex of the ship’s captain.
Since Saturday, the ship’s captain, British-born Commander Yvonne Gray (pictured), has been inundated with sexist trolling online.
The HMNZS Manawanui caught fire and then capsized after running aground a nautical mile off the Samoan island of Upolu on Saturday night.
New Zealand Defense Minister Judith Collins (pictured) defended the captain in the face of negativity.
She added that she was dismayed to see trolling from “armchair admirals, people who will never have to make decisions that mean life or death for their subordinates.”
‘I seriously thought in 2024 what the hell is going on here with people who are sitting on their couch operating a keyboard making comments about people they don’t know, about an area they don’t know and are just vile. Where’s a little decency?
Collins, the country’s first female defense minister, said women in uniform have been abused in the street since the sinking.
“This is outrageous behavior and New Zealand is not known for this and we are better than that.”
Environmental officials are concerned the ship will cause massive damage to the area, which has not been officially surveyed since 1987.
On Thursday morning, Samoa’s Marine Pollution Advisory Committee (MPAC) said the ship was “leaking oil from three separate locations” but that there is still “no trace” of oil on land.
The HMNZS Manawanui ran aground off the southern coast of the Samoan island of Upolu on Saturday.
Samoan police and emergency teams reportedly worked with Australian Defense personnel to bring the ship’s crew to safety.
The ship ran aground near Samoa.
All 75 people on board were rescued from the sinking ship
The exact cause of the ship’s grounding is still unknown, but the New Zealand Defense Force is investigating the incident.
Local residents are still terrified that marine life will be severely affected.
One man, Manu Percival, told Radio NZ: “There are so many green sea turtles in that area, so many rays.”
‘Just where the ship sank, inland, there is a huge lagoon of brackish water that is home to all kinds of animals. Coconut crabs, everything. Everyone will be affected.
New Zealand’s military said a team had been created “to react to any pollution on local beaches and remove debris that has begun to wash ashore.”
He added that divers from Samoa’s Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment had also “observed damage to the reef where the collision occurred.”