U.K. concerned over environmental damage after ships’ collision

Jet fuel from a ruptured tank poured into the North Sea after the Portugal-registered container ship Solong broadsided the U.S.-flagged tanker MV Stena Immaculate on Monday.

U.K. officials were concerned about possible environmental damage Tuesday and looking for answers a day after a cargo ship hit a tanker transporting jet fuel for the U.S. military off eastern England, setting both vessels ablaze.

Jet fuel from a ruptured tank poured into the North Sea after the Portugal-registered container ship Solong broadsided the U.S.-flagged tanker MV Stena Immaculate on Monday. The collision sparked explosions and fires that burned for more than 24 hours. Footage filmed from a helicopter on Tuesday morning showed the fire appeared to largely be out on the tanker, which had a large gash on its port side.

The U.K. coast guard agency said Tuesday that “the Solong is still alight and the fire on board the Stena Immaculate has greatly diminished.” It said the cargo ship was drifting south, away from the tanker, and a 1 kilometer (around a 1/2 mile) exclusion zone had been put in place around both ships. The government said the cause of the collision was being investigated, but there was no indication of foul play.

Government minister Matthew Pennycook said it was a “fast-moving and dynamic situation.”

He said that air quality readings were normal and coast guard units “are well-equipped to contain and disperse any oil spills,” with equipment including booms deployed from vessels to stop oil spreading, and aircraft that can spray dispersants on a spill.

The collision triggered a major rescue operation by lifeboats, coast guard aircraft and commercial vessels in the foggy North Sea.

All but one of the 37 crew members from the two vessels were brought safely ashore in the port of Grimsby, about 150 miles (240 kilometers) north of London, with no major injuries. One crew member was missing, and the coast guards called off the search late Monday.

The U.K. Marine Accident Investigation Branch has begun gathering evidence of what caused the Solong, bound from Grangemouth, Scotland, to Rotterdam, Netherlands, to hit the stationary tanker, which was anchored about 10 miles (16 kilometers) off the English coast.