WITHERNSEA, England: British police arrested a man on Tuesday on suspicion of gross negligence manslaughter after an unexplained collision at sea left a tanker carrying US army jet fuel with a gaping hole in its side and a container ship adrift and likely to sink.
The tanker, Stena Immaculate, which carries jet fuel for the US military, was at anchor on Monday when it was struck by the smaller Solong, causing huge fires and explosions, releasing fuel into the sea, and potentially posing a danger to wildlife.
One crew member from the Portuguese-flagged Solong is assumed dead and the vessel is unlikely to stay afloat, maritime minister Mike Kane told parliament.
Thirty-six people were brought ashore following the incident and no others remain missing, the coast guard said.
“We have arrested a 59-year-old man on suspicion of gross negligence manslaughter in connection with the collision,” police said in a statement.
Aerial video on Tuesday showed a gaping hole in Stena Immaculate’s hull, with fire damage along its length, although the flames that engulfed it after the collision appeared to have subsided.
The Solong, which appeared badly burnt and smoldering in separate footage, had drifted south overnight, the coast guard said, adding that a one-kilometer (0.62 mile) exclusion zone had been placed around both vessels.
Owners of the Solong said the vessel was not carrying sodium cyanide, contrary to an earlier report from maritime data provider Lloyd’s List Intelligence, which cited the local coast guard, but conservation groups said the environmental impact from the spillage of jet fuel could prove wide reaching.
The Solang owners said they were monitoring four containers which had previously been used to store sodium cyanide.
The surrounding area is home to large colonies of protected seabirds including puffins and gannets as well as a delicate coastal ecosystem.
’UNLIKELY TO STAY AFLOAT’
“Modelling suggests that should the Solong remain afloat, it will remain clear of land for the next few hours,” Kane told parliament. “The assessment of (the coast guard) is, however, that it is unlikely the vessel will remain afloat.”
Earlier, Dutch marine provider Boskalis, appointed to salvage the Stena Immaculate tanker, said four ships carrying foam and extinguishing agents were heading to the scene.
Authorities are ready to deploy equipment to minimize pollution at sea, including spray dispersants for oil spills and containment booms, if required, the British government said.
The potential environmental impact is being assessed, coordinated by the Maritime and Coast Guard Agency and an East of England environmental group, and the situation is being monitored overhead by plane, the government added.
Local lawmaker Graham Stuart said most of the spilled jet fuel appeared now to have burned off and there was no sign of either ship leaking engine oil.
“Risks remain, however. It’s possible that heavy engine oil could yet leak,” Stuart said on X.
Conservation groups have warned of possible risks including the immediate poisoning of wildlife, damage to habitats on land, and the longer-term accumulation of toxins within food chains.
The coast guard statement cited the UK Health Security Agency as saying that “any public health risk on shore is currently deemed to be very low.”
UNEXPLAINED INCIDENT
Authorities and operators of the vessels have yet to offer an explanation of why multiple safety systems on board modern vessels failed to prevent Monday’s collision.
Data from maritime analytics website MarineTraffic showed the 183-meter (600 ft) Stena Immaculate was anchored off Immingham, northeast England, when it was struck by the 140-meter (460 ft) Solong, which was en route to Rotterdam.
The Solong was sailing at cruise speed and close to the maximum of around 18-19 knots, shipping sources said, and the vessel had sailed through the same area on past voyages.
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s spokesman said there was currently no suggestion of “foul play.”
The Stena Immaculate was carrying 220,000 barrels of jet fuel in 16 segregated cargo tanks, but it was unclear how much of it was spilt after at least one tank was hit, Crowley, the US logistics group which operated the vessel, said on Monday.
While Britain’s Marine Accident Investigation Branch will gather initial evidence, overall responsibility for investigating the crash lies with the US and Portuguese authorities, the flag states of the vessels.
