By Emma Jolliff and Kim Choe
Both sides involved in the crash between a Japanese whaling ship and the anti-whaling boat Ady are blaming each other for the collision and denying it was an accident.
The New Zealand-registered Ady Gil had its bow ripped open by the Japanese whaling ship Shonan Maru 2 in remote Antarctic waters yesterday.
Six crew members aboard the high-tech trimaran had to scramble for their lives, and dramatic pictures from both sides of the so called 'whale wars' show the moment of impact.
Captain of the Ady Gil, Pete Bethune, says they were low on fuel and idling before they were hit.
Mr Bethune says the six crew onboard at the time are lucky to be alive.
"When he turned, all of a sudden the crew realised we were about to be smacked. All of us jumped over the horn, the impact was massive, it just demolished the front of the boat, totally demolished."
The impending hit was seen by those on the nearby Bob Barker.
The Ady Gil weighs 18 tonnes – the Shonan Maru, 1000 tonnes.
Mr Bethune says there was only ever going to be one outcome, and he has no doubt who is at fault.
"From a legal point of view, he came in and rammed our port side, and we have right of way."
The crash happened in the waters of Commonwealth Bay, off the coast of Antarctica.
But the Japanese Institute of Cetacean Research, which conducts the whaling, says it's the Ady Gil that is in the wrong.
"You can clearly see the Ady Gil puts the engines into gear, moves forward and tries to outrun the Shonan Maru," says spokesman Glenn Inwood.
He says it is typical behaviour of the Sea Shepherd group.
"The result is what happens when you take a plastic boat down to Antarctica and it hits a steel one," he says.
The Ady Gil is registered in New Zealand. The crew say they have had no support from the New Zealand government.
"I got a letter from Murray McCully telling me to be restrained and to do my utmost to avoid collisions," says Mr Bethune, "and now my boat's been pole axed by a Japanese vessel."
Mr McCully says he will be calling on the Japanese government to influence the standard of conduct in the Southern Ocean, "just as I'm calling on New Zealanders who've been involved in this latest incident to improve the standards of behaviour. Someone's going to die if we don't do that."
Today, it was back to business as usual for the Sea Shepherd crew.
"Right now we're in pursuit of the Japanese whaling fleet," says Paul Watson. "We're putting our helicopter up in half an hour."
Mr McCully says the Government has a strong view against whaling in the Southern Ocean, but its powers are limited in international waters.
As word of the collision reached New Zealand, families waited anxiously to find out if those they knew aboard the Ady Gil had survived.
They were aware the anti-whaling mission was risky, but never expected it to be quite so dramatic.
"When they turned into us, I thought we were done for," says Simeon Houtman. "Just when that first rush of water came in, I really thought that we were going to if not die, sink. It was the most scariest thing I've ever been through."
Mr Houtman is suffering from two suspected rib fractures, but is just thankful the Ady Gil stayed afloat .
"I looked inside and there was a foot of water inside, and I thought, 'Oh god, we're sinking,' but thankfully that boat's pretty much made of foam, so it stayed afloat."
And despite his injuries, he made sure to put in a call to his father back home.
"My son rang from the satellite phone and said that everything was alright," says Wim Houman. "We agreed that we would get a call if anything happens, so the parents don't have to worry, because we don't want to see it on the news and then find out later. So that was the first I heard of it."
Despite the dramatic turn of events, family members of the Ady Gil crew say they have always known their loved ones were sailing in dangerous waters.
"Pete knew it was going to be an aggressive campaign," says his wife, Sharyn Bethune. "He didn't go down there to throw daisy chains at them or anything. He was there to disrupt them."
"It's just part of it," says Wim Houtman. "Everyone knows he's in danger going to Antarctica - there's a war going on down there."
A war which the Australian government emphatically disapproves.
"We call on all parties to exercise absolute restraint, because safety at sea is the number one priority," says Julia Gillard, Australian acting prime minister.
Ms Gillard says its authorities will assist with inquiries.
"As the Ady Gil is a New Zealand-flagged vessel, we expect that New Zealand will conduct investigations into the collision."
But for now, the crew and their families are thankful the outcome did not result in tragedy.
3 News
Listen to Pete Bethune, skipper of the Ady Gil, explain the incident with the Japanese whalers on RadioLIVE