MV Rabaul Queen
MV Rabaul Queen arriving at Kimbe Port in 2009 | |
| History | |
|---|---|
| Name | Rabaul Queen |
| Owner | Rabaul Shipping |
| Operator | Star Ships |
| Port of registry | Papua New Guinea |
| Route | Kimbe—Lae |
| Completed | 1983 |
| Out of service | 2 February 2012 |
| Identification |
|
| Fate | Sank 2 February 2012 |
| General characteristics | |
| Type | Passenger ferry |
| Tonnage | 259 GT |
| Length | 155 ft (47 m) |
| Capacity | 310 passengers (permitted) |
| Crew | 12 |
MV Rabaul Queen, en route from Kimbe to Lae, sank approximately 9 nautical miles (16 km) off Finschhafen
MV Rabaul Queen was a passenger ferry owned by the Papua New Guinea company Rabaul Shipping. The ship, built in Japan in 1983, operated on short runs in that country, before being brought to Papua New Guinea in 1998 and plying a regular weekly route between Kimbe, the capital of West New Britain, and Lae, the capital of the mainland province of Morobe.
In the early hours of 2 February 2012, the ferry capsized and later sank in rough conditions. The final death toll is unknown because the exact number of passengers is unknown; estimates range from 88 to 223, with the official Commission of Inquiry estimating the dead at 146 to 165.