Scale: 1 cm = 160.5 cm
The MV Rena shipwreck was one of the world’s most complex maritime environmental disasters.
The huge container ship slammed into a reef at full speed. It released fuel oil, dangerous goods and tonnes of debris into a dynamic ocean environment, next to a pristine coastline that was home to endangered birdlife.
All 25 of Rena’s crew were rescued, but the captain and navigation officer were sentenced to seven months in prison for causing the wreck. The owner of the ship was fined $300,000.
The disaster led to one of the most expensive salvage and clean-up operations ever, costing over $700 million. It would have been higher if not for the 8,000 volunteers who crawled along the coastline removing oil from beaches, rocks and tide pools by hand: legends.
Builder’s notes
Designed by: Luke Cini and Wull Durkatz
Built By: Luke Cini, Ry Catania and Liam Tullett
It made most sense to start the construction with the ship itself, as we were unsure how it would interact with the brick-built water. Once the ship was complete, we were able to find a suitable wedge plate that would marry up the diagonal angle of the ship with the square-built water on the base. Having the ship on lean also complicated the matter, as the tapering effect caused many gaps that were difficult to fill with square LEGO® pieces.
Once we had the main hull of the ship built, we were able to begin building the containers. This was the most time-consuming part of the build, as there was a lot detail we wanted to include to give the shipping containers a realistic look. We got creative with various printed and shaped tiles to represent the various logos that were seen on many of the containers. It also became challenging when it was time to build containers that were on a precarious lean. We found hinge bricks came in handy to get the perfect angles.
Model facts
- This model took 140 hours to make
- It uses 16,734 bricks
- It weighs 30 kilograms