Say it with me: DIVERSITY 👏 IS 👏 OUR 👏 STRENGTH 👏

The country of New Zealand lost its first navy vessel since World War II after the HMNZS Manawanui - a $100 million survey and dive vessel commissioned in 2018 - ran aground, burst into flames, and sank off the coast of Samoa.

The commanding officer was Commander Yvonne Gray, a Brit who moved to New Zealand in 2012 and joined the NZ Navy after taking a vacation to the country with her lesbian wife. She had previously served with the British Navy since 1993.

In 2022, Commander Gray said she wanted to further the capabilities of a ship that was still in its infancy.

Thankfully, after the crash, the entire crew was rescued overnight:

Reports say that after the ship crashed into the reef, it caught fire within 15 minutes and sank, which now sets up a potentially disastrous oil spill that could greatly harm the local reef and the fishing ecosystem there.

From CNN:

The specialist dive and hydrographic vessel lost power and ran aground on Saturday evening while conducting a reef survey one nautical mile off the southern coast of the Samoan island of Upolu, according to New Zealand authorities.

By Sunday morning, the vessel was 'listing heavily,' the navy said. Smoke was spotted around 6:40 a.m., and by 9 a.m. the ship had slipped below the surface.

It's the first unintentional sinking of a New Zealand naval vessel since World War II, authorities said, as they opened a court of inquiry into what happened.

While there has been no official report as to why the ship lost power, one has to wonder if Commander Gray wasn't busy posing for pictures in the name of inclusion.

Repeat after us: DIVERSITY 👏 IS 👏 OUR 👏 STRENGTH 👏

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