Oil tanker and cargo vessel collide in North Sea

A major rescue operation was launched after a tanker laden with fuel and a cargo vessel collided in the North Sea off the East Yorkshire coast, with both vessels catching fire.

HM Coastguard said the incident happened near the Humber Estuary, with the alarm raised at 09:48 GMT on Monday. A number of lifeboats and a Coastguard helicopter were sent to the scene.

So far, 32 casualties have been brought ashore, but some crew members were yet to be accounted for, said Martyn Boyers, chief executive of the Port of Grimsby East.

Maritime firm Crowley, which manages the tanker, said the vessel had suffered a ruptured cargo tank, adding crew had abandoned ship following “multiple explosions onboard”.

The vessels involved in the collision are the US-flagged Stena Immaculate tanker and the Solong, a Portuguese-flagged container ship, according to data from the ship-tracking website MarineTraffic.

Stena Bulk chief executive Erik Hanell told the BBC all the crew of the Stena Immaculate were accounted for and safe.

Earlier, the RNLI said there were reports “that a number of people had abandoned the vessels following a collision and there were fires on both ships”.

Mr Boyers said: “It’s too far out for us to see – about 10 miles – but we have seen the vessels bringing them in.

“They must have sent a mayday out – luckily there was a crew transfer vessel out there already.

“Since then there has been a flotilla of ambulances to pick up anyone they can find.”

The casualties’ conditions remain unclear.

A Coastguard Rescue Helicopter from Humberside was called out, alongside lifeboats from Skegness, Bridlington, Mablethorpe and Cleethorpes, an HM Coastguard fixed wing aircraft, and nearby vessels with fire-fighting capability.

“The incident remains ongoing,” an HM Coastguard spokesperson said.

According to MarineTraffic, the Stena Immaculate had travelled from the Greek port of Agioi Theodoroi and was anchored by the Humber Estuary.

The Solong had been sailing from the Scottish port of Grangemouth to Rotterdam, in the Netherlands.

In a statement, a spokesperson for the Marine Accident Investigation Branch said it had deployed a team to Grimsby.

They said: “The Marine Accident Investigation Branch has deployed a team to Grimsby following the collision of the Portuguese registered container ship Solong and the US registered oil tanker Stena Immaculate which collided in the North Sea this morning.

“Our team of inspectors and support staff are gathering evidence and undertaking a preliminary assessment of the accident to determine our next steps.”

Meanwhile, the coastguard said it was assessing the “likely” counter-pollution response that might be required.

A spokesperson for environmental group Greenpeace UK said: “At this stage, it’s too early to assess the extent of any environmental damage.”

It added that its “thoughts are are with all those affected”.