A cargo ship collided with a US-military chartered tanker, the Stena Immaculate, off the English coast near Grimsby, resulting in one crew member missing and a significant fire. The Stena was carrying 220,000 barrels of jet fuel, and the Solong had containers of sodium cyanide. Emergency services conducted a rescue operation, saving 36 individuals, while 13 crew from the Solong were brought ashore. Concerns about toxic hazards arose due to the fuel spill near a harbor porpoise breeding ground. Humber estuary traffic was suspended as investigations continued into the cause of the collision, which remains rare in the North Sea.
Grimsby, UK:
On Monday, one individual was unaccounted for after a cargo vessel collided with a US military-chartered tanker transporting jet fuel in the North Sea, raising alarms about “multiple toxic hazards” along the English coastline.
A large-scale operation coordinated by the UK Coastguard successfully rescued dozens, as dramatic images captured a massive plume of dense black smoke and flames emanating from the site approximately 10 miles (16 kilometers) off the eastern shore.
The tanker Stena Immaculate was “anchored off the North Sea coast near Hull… (and) was impacted by the container ship Solong,” stated Crowley, the tanker’s US-based operators.
According to Jillian Morris, spokesperson for the Military Sealift Command, the Stena was engaged in a short-term charter for the US military, operating civilian-crewed vessels that provide ocean transport for the Defense Department.
Crowley reported that the collision caused a rupture in the tanker “carrying A1-jet fuel,” leading to a fire and a release of fuel was “reported.”
Additionally, the tanker was transporting roughly 220,000 barrels of jet fuel, while the Solong had 15 containers of sodium cyanide, according to information from Lloyd’s List, though it remains unclear if any of the hazardous compound leaked.
A representative for UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer described the incident as “extremely concerning.”
Emergency crews evaluated 36 individuals at the scene, with no one needing hospitalization, as stated by Alastair Smith from the East Midlands Ambulance Service.
Thirteen out of the 14 crew members aboard the Solong were brought ashore, and searches for the missing crew member “are ongoing,” according to a statement from the ship’s German-based owner, Ernst Russ.
All crew members aboard the Stena Immaculate were confirmed safe, as reported by a spokeswoman for the tanker’s Swedish owner, Stena Bulk, to AFP.
– ‘Toxic hazards’ –
Reports indicated “fires on both ships,” as confirmed by the Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) to AFP.
A spokesperson for the Marine Accident Investigation Branch stated, “Our team of inspectors and support staff are gathering evidence and undertaking a preliminary assessment of the accident to determine our next steps.”
Ivor Vince, founder of ASK Consultants, an environmental risk advisory group, informed AFP that “the good news is it’s not persistent, it’s not like a crude oil spill.”
“Most of it will evaporate quickly, and what doesn’t evaporate will be degraded by microorganisms fairly rapidly,” he continued, while cautioning that “it will kill fish and other sea life.”
Paul Johnston, a senior scientist at the Greenpeace Research Laboratories at Exeter University, emphasized, “We are extremely concerned about the multiple toxic hazards these chemicals could pose to marine ecosystems.”
The jet fuel leaked near a breeding ground for harbour porpoises; sodium cyanide is “a highly toxic chemical that could inflict severe damage,” he warned.
– Humber traffic suspended –
All maritime traffic was “suspended” in the Humber estuary leading to the North Sea, said Associated British Ports (ABP), which oversees operations at the Ports of Hull and Immingham in the area.
The German Central Command for Maritime Emergencies also dispatched a vessel equipped for firefighting and oil recovery.
The alarm regarding the collision near the port city of Hull in East Yorkshire was raised at 0948 GMT.
A coastguard helicopter, an aircraft, lifeboats from four towns, and additional nearby vessels contributed to the large-scale rescue effort, according to the UK Coastguard.
Grimsby local Paul Lancaster, a former sailor, remarked to AFP, “I can’t comprehend how two ships of that size could collide.”
“There must have been a significant engineering failure,” he speculated outside a Grimsby pub.
– Collisions rare –
Incidents like this are uncommon in the busy North Sea.
In October 2023, two cargo ships, the Verity and the Polesie, collided near Germany’s Heligoland islands in the North Sea.
Three fatalities were reported, with two others missing and presumed dead.
In October 2015, the Flinterstar freighter, laden with 125 tonnes of diesel and 427 tonnes of fuel oil, sank after colliding with the Al Oraiq tanker eight kilometers (five miles) off the Belgian coast.
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