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An oil tanker and cargo ship have had a catastrophic collision in the North Sea off the east coast of England (Lincolnshire Live)
by Mick the Ram
A huge rescue operation has been undertaken off the east coast of England today (10 March) after a cargo ship crashed into an oil tanker which had been anchored at the time, causing a large inferno in the North Sea and the prospect of an ecological disaster.
The tanker named Stena Immaculate was sailing under a US flag, and had arrived from the Greek port of Agioi Theodoroi, whilst the cargo ship named Solong – which is Portuguese-flagged vessel – was heading from Grangemouth in Scotland destined for Rotterdam in the Netherlands.
The collision occurred close to the Humber Estuary, near the city of Hull and the town of Grimsby, and saw a fireball emerge from the impact, with early speculation indicating that the container ship may have been travelling on autopilot at the time, although visibility in the area was reported to be poor before the crash, according to the Met Office.
Emergency services, together with lifeboats were scrambled and civilian boats also answered the call for aid in the immediate aftermath.
It has emerged that all 37 crew from both ships have been accounted for and brought ashore, with only one of those being hospitalised, although the extent of that person’s injuries are not yet known.
The American Maritime Officers union has said the tanker was part of a programme to have 10 ships capable of transporting jet oil for the US army in “times of need”.
Could have been on autopilot
The Stena Immaculate was built in 2017 and weighs a whopping 29,854 tons and as David McFarlane, director Maritime Risk and Safety Consultants, pointed out, it could take up to an hour to raise its anchor, meaning the tanker would have been unlikely to have been able to avoid the collision by moving out of the Solong’s way.
He also suggested that the cargo vessel may have had autopilot activated which “just steers a course, they don’t deviate, there’s no bend in the sea,” he added.
Giant of a vessel
The massive Immaculate measures some 600 feet in length and 100 feet in width, anchored just off shore from a refinery in Corinth, Greece.
Data from Kpler, an analytics firm, shows that the tanker was carrying 128,476 barrels of refined crude oil, due for delivery to a refinery in the Humber Estuary on Thursday 13 March, although that figure is still to be confirmed.
It is managed by US logistics firm Crowley and owned by Sweden’s Stena Sphere, which is controlled by the billionaire Olsson family.
Fire on the water
The Solong was believed to be cruising at around 16 knots when it ploughed into the oil tanker causing a huge explosion and creating plumes of black smoke at the scene.
It left both ships ablaze and fire raging on the water, with reports suggesting ruptures in the Immaculate’s tanks raising the possibility of a major environmental catastrophe.
The Marine Accident Investigation Branch confirmed that a team of inspectors and support staff were already gathering evidence and undertaking a preliminary assessment of the accident to determine the next steps.
Hoping for best possible outcome
England’s Yorkshire coast is home to a large number of oil terminals, processing shipments of foreign crude destined to be refined into petrol and other fuels.
Back in 1989, a similar collision in the same region saw two ships catch fire and left almost 100,000 metric tons of crude at risk of washing onshore, where it would have wreaked havoc on marine life.
Fortunately, strong currents washed the slick away from land and should the worst happen as a result of this latest crash, everyone will have everything crossed for a similar outcome as a best case scenario.
How did something like this happen. Are there nit radars to detect objects close by. Did someone fall asleep at the wheel