Stern of stricken oil tanker sinks after breaking away from wreck

(4 Apr 2012) AERIAL SHOTS
1. Various of cargo ship Rena, which ran aground on a reef east of New Zealand's North Island, being battered by rough seas
STORYLINE:
The rear half of a Liberian-flagged cargo ship which ran ground on a reef near New Zealand six months ago finally sunk after being battered by rough seas.
The bow section of the stricken container ship Rena remained above water about 14 nautical miles (22 kilometres) from Tauranga on the east coast of New Zealand's North Island.
Maritime New Zealand (MNZ) warned vessels to beware of debris, including cargo containers, after the bow section of the Rena sank near the Astrolabe Reef.
MNZ also warned communities on the east of the North Island that the sinking of the aft section would likely result in the loss of more debris and small amounts of oil into the sea.
The debris and oil were likely to come ashore, but the amount of oil released was only "a tiny percentage" of the oil released immediately after the grounding on 5 October last year, a statement from MNZ read.
A light sheen of oil could be seen stretching about one kilometre northwest of the wreck, it said.
The forward section of the vessel was holding on the reef, but had suffered further damage to its rear section.
A wave of over 12 metres was recorded at the reef over Tuesday night, with winds of 50 kilometres an hour and seas of 8 to 9 metres experienced on Wednesday, the statement read.
Strong winds and rough seas, which were hampering recovery of the debris at sea, were expected to continue for several days.

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