[4] The Wahine began transporting passengers on day and overnight trips on New Zealand's inter-island route between the ports of Wellington and Lyttelton in 1966.

[4][5] On 10 April 1968, near the end of a routine northbound overnight crossing from Lyttelton, Wahine was caught in a fierce storm stirred by tropical cyclone Giselle.

She ran aground on Barrett Reef, then drifted and capsized and sank in the shallow waters near Steeple Rock at the mouth of Wellington Harbour.

[6] The unfolding shipwreck drama was covered by radio and television crews, as the Wahine ran aground within a short distance of New Zealand's capital city, Wellington.

Newspaper crews, and other journalists and photographers, provided immediate news coverage documenting the passenger rescue and loss of life.

[9] Since then ferries have plied Cook Strait and the Kaikōura Coast, transporting passengers and cargo between Wellington in the north and Picton or Lyttelton in the south.

[2] Built of steel, her hull was completed in ten months, and she was christened and launched on 14 July 1965[1] by the Union Company's director's wife.

She left Greenock, Scotland for New Zealand on 18 June 1966 and arrived at Wellington on 24 July 1966; she sailed on her maiden voyage to Lyttelton one week later, on 1 August.

[2] The powerplant was turbo-electric transmission, with four boilers supplying steam to two turbo alternators that drove the twin main propellers and gave a top speed of 22 knots (41 km/h).

Common areas included a cafeteria, lounge, smoke room, gift shop, two enclosed promenades and open decks.

[2] On the evening of 9 April 1968, Wahine departed from Lyttelton for a routine overnight crossing to Wellington, carrying 610 passengers and 123 crew.

In the early morning of Wednesday, 10 April, two violent storms merged over Wellington, creating a single extratropical cyclone that was the worst recorded in New Zealand's history.

Although there had been weather warnings when she set out from Lyttelton, there was no indication that storms would be severe or any worse than those often experienced by vessels crossing Cook Strait.

Around 13:15, the combined effect of the tide and the storm swung Wahine around, providing a patch of clear water sheltered from the wind.

[2] Survivor Shirley Hick, remembered for losing two of her three children in the disaster, recalled this event vividly, as her three-year-old daughter Alma drowned in this lifeboat.

Wahine launched her life rafts, but waves up to 6 metres (20 ft) high capsized some of them and many people were killed.

When the weather cleared, the sight of Wahine foundering in the harbour led many vessels to race to the scene, including the ferry GMV Aramoana,[2] tugs, fishing boats, yachts and small personal craft.

As this area was desolate and unpopulated, many survivors were exposed to the elements for several hours while rescue teams tried to navigate the gravel road along the shoreline.

Ten weeks after the disaster, a court of inquiry found errors of judgement had been made, but stressed that the conditions at the time had been difficult and dangerous.

A plaque and the foremast are at the parking area near Burdans Gate on the eastern side of the harbour, on the coast where many of the survivors and dead washed up.

The Wellington Museum has a permanent commemorative exhibition on its maritime floor that includes artifacts and a film about the storm and the sinking.