The Stena Bulk tanker involved in a collision and fire in the North Sea lost jet fuel cargo from just one of its tanks, the Swedish shipowner said on Monday.
The confirmation that just 17,500 barrels, or about 2,200 tonnes, of the US military cargo was lost eases worries of a wider spill from the 49,700-dwt tanker Stena Immaculate (built 2017).
The US-flagged tanker suffered explosions, a fire and damage after it was struck Ernst Russ’s 804-teu container ship Solong (built 2005) off the east coast of England. The incident also led to fire and significant damage on the Solong, as well as the death of one of its seafarers.
Stena Bulk, which operates the Stena Immaculate in a joint venture with US-based Crowley, said Smit Salvage is still working on a detailed assessment on board the tanker.
Salvage crews confirmed that, other than the single tank of A-1 jet fuel, the damage only affected a ballast tank containing seawater.
The ship was on charter to the US Military Sealift Command and carrying 220,000 barrels of the fuel for the Defense Logistics Agency.
Cal Hayden, vice president of global ship management at Crowley, said that before being forced to abandon ship, the crew had the “dedication and presence of mind” to ensure that fire monitors were active so that they would provide boundary cooling water to other cargo tanks on the ship.
“Their heroic action limited damage to only the cargo tanks impacted due to the allision,” he said in a statement.
‘Fully committed’
“We remain fully committed to supporting the UK response to the striking of the Stena Immaculate and any environmental remediation.”
Stena Bulk said that the UK Maritime and Coastguard Agency believes there is no cause for concern about further pollution from the tanker.
Authorities must sign off on a comprehensive salvage and tow plan before the tanker can be moved.
The Portuguese-flagged Solong is owned by Germany’s Ernst Russ and is on charter to operator Samskip.
The Stena Immaculate is insured by Steamship Mutual, while the Solong is insured by Skuld. Both ships are classified by DNV, according to data from Equasis.(Copyright)
