By Sam Tabahriti
LONDON (Reuters) -Only one tank filled with jet fuel was damaged after the U.S. military-contracted tanker that was transporting a shipment was struck by a cargo ship off England’s northeast coast, U.S. logistics firm Crowley said.
The tanker, Stena Immaculate, which can carry tens of thousands of tons of jet fuel, was at anchor on March 10 off Humberside when it was struck by the smaller Solong. Fires and explosions broke out.
Crowley, which manages the tanker, said in a statement on Sunday the third-party salvage team had confirmed damage “was limited to one cargo tank containing Jet-A1 fuel and one ballast tank containing sea water”.
Owner Stena Bulk confirmed on Monday there were 18 fuel tanks aboard the vessel, contrary to previous statements by Crowley that there were 16.
Out of the 220,000 barrels of jet fuel the Stena Immaculate was carrying, Crowley said 17,515 were lost due to the impact and three-day fire.
The logistics firm also commended the crew for triggering a firefighting system before abandoning the ship.
Erik Hanell, chief executive of Stena Immaculate owner Stena Bulk, previously told Reuters earlier that two of 18 fuel tanks had leaked, with an estimated 10% of the cargo.
In an update on Monday, the coastguard said that small pellets of plastic resin – known as nurdles – used in plastics production had been spotted in the water near the British coast on Sunday, with some also washing up on shore.
Nurdles are not toxic but can be dangerous to wildlife if ingested. The coastguard said cleanup efforts had started.
In a subsequent update, the authorities said that both ships remained stable and that salvage operations were continuing. They added there were only small periodic pockets of fire on the Portuguese-flagged Solong, which were not causing undue concern.
On Saturday, the Russian captain of Solong, Vladimir Motin, appeared in Hull Magistrates’ Court after being charged with gross negligence manslaughter over the death of Filipino national and Solong crew member Mark Angelo Pernia.
Motin did not make an application for bail and was remanded in custody to appear in court in London on April 14.
(Reporting by Sam Tabahriti, additional reporting by Jonathan Saul; Editing by Angus MacSwan)
