Amateur silent, colour footage revealing the power of the storm in Seatoun, Wellington, the morning of April 10, 1968.
Anchored yachts in the harbour receive a battering from the fierce winds. Sails in tatters and boats pitching wildly. A yacht submerged with only the mast visible beside a jetty. A collapsed garage; a view of the harbour; a tree torn down lying across a road.
The Wahine passenger ferry can be seen beyond a reef, listing heavily to one side. Progressively, the vessel can be seen sinking in the Wellington harbour. One of the Wahine’s lifeboats is pulled into the Seatoun Beach by a large crowd. Waiting ambulance and army trucks standby ready to take survivors to the hospital.