HANDOUT – The picture shows smoke rising from a ship. An oil tanker is on fire in the North Sea near the British coast. The “Stena Immaculate” collided with the cargo ship “Solong” this morning for reasons that have not yet been clarified and caught fire. Photo: -/Bartek Smialek/AP/dpa – ATTENTION: For editorial use only in connection with current reporting within the next 14 days and only with full reference to the above credit
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The tanker “Stena Immaculate”, which was damaged in a collision off the British coast, was carrying 220,000 barrels (almost 35 million liters) of jet fuel.
This is according to a statement from the operator Crowley, a US shipping and logistics company. The cargo was distributed across 16 separate tanks, it added. At least one of these tanks had been damaged in the collision. It was initially unclear how much of the fuel might have leaked into the water.
According to Crowley, the US-flagged tanker was rammed by the Portuguese container ship “Solong” on Monday morning as it lay at anchor off the mouth of the River Humber. It was initially unclear why the accident occurred. The flag states are in charge of the investigation.
Gaping hole on the port side
Both ships caught fire in the collision. There are said to have been several explosions. The British Secretary of State for Housing, Matthew Pennycock, told “Times Radio” this morning that the fire was still raging.
A gaping hole could be seen on the port side of the ship on BBC aerial photographs. No more flames could be seen. However, gas and liquids appeared to be escaping from various places, as could be seen on video footage.
Nothing more was initially known about the condition of the “Solong”. The freighter is said to have been carrying several containers of sodium cyanide. It is unclear whether any of it leaked into the water. Sodium cyanide is a toxic substance that can pollute the ecosystem. British authorities are in the process of assessing the impact on the environment, Pennycock said.