Rapaki (steam crane)
The steam crane Rapaki was a historic ship in New Zealand.
 Rapaki in Auckland Harbour | |
| History | |
|---|---|
 New Zealand | |
| Name | Rapaki |
| Owner | Lyttleton Harbour Board |
| Port of registry | Auckland |
| Builder | Fleming & Ferguson, Paisley, Scotland[1] |
| Yard number | 485[1] |
| Launched | 19 November 1925[1] |
| Identification |
|
| Fate | Towed for scrapping in December 2018 |
| General characteristics | |
| Type | Steam crane |
| Tonnage | 762 GRT[1] |
| Length | 160.4 ft (48.9 m)[1] |
| Beam | 52.3 ft (15.9 m)[1] |
| Installed power | Steam engines |
| Propulsion | Twin screw[1] |
Service history
On 24 December 1925 the Lyttelton Harbour Board ordered an 80-ton self-propelled floating crane, called Rapaki. She was named after the settlement close to Lyttelton of the same name. She was built at a cost of £42,000. The Rapaki took 109 days to sail from Greenock, Scotland, to Lyttelton, arriving on 28 July 1926.[2] Rapaki was one of two steam cranes in New Zealand waters, the other being the Hikitia which as of 2021 can still be visited on the Wellington Waterfront. Rapaki operated in Lyttelton for 60 years. During World War II Rapaki was requisitioned for war work in the Pacific.[3][4] It had been intended that she go to the Middle East, but after Japan joined the war this plan was cancelled.[5]
At the end of her working life, Rapaki was transported to Auckland,[4] and became an exhibit at the Maritime Museum on Auckland's waterfront.[6] In December 2018, the Rapaki was towed to Wynyard Wharf to be broken up.[7] Some of its parts were given to the Hikitia.[8]
References
- Cameron, Stuart; Allen, Bruce; Robinson, George. "Rapaki". Clyde-built Database. Archived from the original on 23 September 2006. Retrieved 22 January 2016.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link) - "Rapaki safe". The Press. 28 July 1926. Retrieved 25 February 2021 – via Paperspast.
- "Rapaki returns to Lyttelton". The Press. 13 November 1945. Retrieved 25 February 2021.
- Bailey, Robyn (3 July 2002). "Saved from the scrapheap". NZ Herald. Retrieved 24 February 2021.
- Secretary, Marine Department (22 July 1946). "Marine Department Annual Report for the year 1945-46". Appendices to the Journals of the House of Representatives. H-15: 8 – via Paperspast.
- NZ National Maritime Museum
- Johnston, Martin (14 December 2018). "Auckland's heritage coal-powered sea crane sent to be scrapped". The New Zealand Herald. Retrieved 14 December 2018.
- "History of Hikitia". Hikitia. 22 June 2020. Retrieved 24 February 2021.