Last Tuesday, The Bay of Plenty Times reported:
The tug Go Canopus is still connected to the stern section of the Rena. This morning when it became apparent that the angle of its list was changing, salvors took the opportunity to try and use the tug to reposition the rear section on the reef, which would have enabled the container recovery barge Smit Borneo to move in closer. This proved impossible.
The barge Go Canopus was attached to the hull when it began to sink.
[...]
Svitzer spokesman Matt Watson was watching from the air when the stern section fell off the reef.
It took about 40 minutes for the aft-end to slip slowly backwards.
"The stern, the rear-section, has tilted further over to the starboard side and it has slid back. About 75 per cent of the rear-section is now submerged.
"It appears to be perched on the reef's edge," he said.
Svitzer salvors were in a helicopter over the wreck as it began to sink, and Mr Watson said it is possible the stern might have temporarily re-settled into its new position.
The barge Go Canopus was attached to the hull when it began to sink.
"The Go Canopus was attached at the time. It played a role. It powered up when it was clear there was a lot of movement," he said.
It is unclear yet what role the crane barge played and whether it was responsible for the rear-section sinking, he said.
The crane barge was nowhere near the Rena when the stern sunk... so Watsons' comment seems strange.
But what really raised the alarm bells is that in the webcam video below, it's not the Go Canopus tugboat working around the shipwreck as the stern starts to sink... so why the lies?
Two helicopters above the wreck watched as the tugboat maneuvered, and presumably filmed the work. So why hasn’t that footage been released to the public? These questions will likely to go unanswered.
