WAHINE 50 Years On

On 10 April 1968, two storms collided over Wellington causing chaos in the city and disaster at sea. The Wahine hit the rocks near the entrance of Wellington harbour. Fifty-three people died.  More than 600 survived.

There was no counselling, no victim support. All got on with their lives trying to put aside the horrors of what they endured – as survivors – falling, leaping or stepping off the lurching ferry into the sea or onto life rafts. Rescuers set off in small boats in wild conditions to save lives, with little thought for their own safety.

Commissioned by the Whiteboard to do the interviews Anna Cottrell worked on Wahine 50 Years On with director of photography Ivars Berzins and editor Murray Ferguson.