North Sea collision timeline: How devastating oil tanker crash unfolded

Get the free Morning Headlines email for news from our reporters across the world

Sign up to our free Morning Headlines email

Sign up to our free Morning Headlines email

Anchored 13 miles from the coast, the US-flagged Stenna Immaculate was set for a routine stop at the Humber Estuary port in East Yorkshire.

But a “massive” ship “came out of the blue” on Monday morning and smashed into the 183-metre oil tanker, causing an instant fireball which was still burning 24 hours later.

The Portuguese-flagged cargo ship Solong, which was sailing to Rotterdam, collided with the tanker laden with 35 million litres of US military jet fuel.

Follow updates here

A huge 12-hour rescue operation involving lifeboats and helicopters was launched with 36 people brought to shore. One sailor is missing and presumed dead, and another was rushed to hospital.

open image in gallery

An American sailor onboard the Stenna Immaculate told CBS News he only had seconds to react after hearing shouts to brace before the devastating impact.

The 140-metre Solong did not immediately stop and drove into his ship for what seemed like 10 minutes as flames immediately erupted around him, he added.

The decision was made to abandon ship once all the crew members had been accounted for. They left the vessel on a lifeboat, with the captain being the last person to disembark, he said.

The owner of the Solong container ship confirmed its captain had been arrested, hours after Humberside Police said it had arrested a 59-year-old man on suspicion of gross negligence manslaughter following the collision between the Portuguese vessel and US tanker Stena Immaculate.

One crew member from the Solong is still missing and presumed dead, after a search and rescue operation that ended on Monday evening.

The oil tanker’s management firm, Crowley, has since revealed it sustained a ruptured cargo tank after it was struck, causing “multiple explosions” and jet fuel to be released into the water.

Oil spill researcher Dr Alex Lukyanov, of the University of Reading, said: “This particular incident is troubling because it appears to involve persistent oil, which breaks up slowly in water.”

open image in gallery

There were fears Solong was carrying sodium cyanide, but shipping company Ernst Russ, which manages the vessel, said that was not the case.

Four empty containers on board that “previously contained the hazardous chemical” will “continue to be monitored”, it added.

Downing Street said the collision and subsequent spill was “extremely concerning”, while the coastguard said it was assessing the “likely counter-pollution response required”.

The government said on Tuesday that early investigations did not indicate that the incident was caused by foul play.

Transport minister Mike Kane said Solong “continues to burn” and the Coastguard has said “it is unlikely the vessel will remain afloat”.

open image in gallery

He said the “working assumption” is one crew member from the container ship has died, after a search and rescue operation was ended on Monday evening.

Dr Abdul Khalique, head of the maritime centre at Liverpool John Moores University, said a computer reconstruction of the collision suggested Solong’s watch-keepers may be to blame.

He said: “Lookout by sight may have been hampered by the poor prevailing visibility at the time of accident.

“[But] had the watch-keepers been maintaining a proper lookout by radar, they would have spotted this imminent collision threat and taken an action to avoid collision.”

A Department for Transport spokesperson said: “We are working closely with HM Coastguard to help support the response to the incident in the North Sea. We are grateful to all emergency personnel for their continued efforts.”

open image in gallery

Transport secretary Heidi Alexander added: “I am hugely grateful to HM Coastguard, the RNLI and emergency services who have responded to this incident.

“They were on the scene swiftly, have helped rescue those in immediate danger and I know they will continue to work tirelessly over the coming days. My thoughts are with all those involved, especially the family of the missing crew member.

“The Maritime Accident Investigation Branch has begun a preliminary assessment, and I am working closely with the MCA (Maritime and Coastguard Agency) as they conduct an assessment of any counter-pollution response which may be required over the coming days.”