New Zealand has a new wreck dive in the Bay of Islands

Bagpipes wailed and tears were wiped from eyes as the former naval frigate Canterbury sank beneath the waves amid fireballs and black smoke on Saturday.

Hundreds turned out in boats to see the 38-year-old warship scuttled as a dive wreck and artificial reef near Cape Brett after bad weather forced an attempt last month to be called off.

The 3000 tonne vessel took just minutes to plunge 28 metres to the bottom of Deep Water Cove after Paihia 14-year-old Lucy Hamnet detonated charges which cut six holes in the ship's hull.

Organisers of the sinking are calling it a textbook scuttling.

Bay of Islands Canterbury Trust chairman Richard Witehira says, while the ship listed as it went down, a sonar scan of the dive site shows she is sitting upright on the sea bed.

More news about this and a photo of the sinking at:

http://www.stuff.co.nz/northland/4263673a22378.html

Contributed by Tim Hochgrebe added 2007-11-09