Dive Pacific Iss 171 Oct- Nov 2019

Lady with a valiant heart
The long, strange, proud tale of the
SS Empire Shirley aka Tapuhi aka
Tui Tawate at Luganville in Vanuatu
Most of us are familiar with the iconic, bucket list dive
that is the SS President Coolidge and her resident Lady, but
only some of us know the valiant lady abandoned not so
far away whose history rivals that of the President.
By Anne Simmons
The SS Empire Shirley was a
steel tug boat built by A.
Hall & Co of Aberdeen in 1945,
an Empire Class tug designed
for WWII naval support work
in the India to Singapore area.
After the war she was sold
to the Union Steamship
Company of New Zealand
where she was renamed the
Tapuhi. From 1947 to 1973 the
Tapuhi worked between the
ports of New Zealand carrying
fuel oil then, on April 10, 1968,
she faced her greatest challenge
and claim to fame.
To the rescue
On this morning the New
Zealand inter island ferry TEV
…On April 10, 1968, she faced her
greatest challenge and claim to fame…
the rescue at the Wahine disaster…
Wahine was on her regular
trip between Lyttleton in the
South Island to Wellington
in the North Island carrying
600 passengers and 125 crew.
Shortly after 0600 the ship was
hit by a gale force storm and
driven ashore at the entrance to
Wellington harbour. Taking
on water, her pumps in full
force, the TEV Wahine was
blown off course and started
drifting northwards into
the harbour with a huge list
to starboard. At 1100 the tug
Tapuhi arrived and managed
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