Tanker hired by US military ablaze after hit by container ship
A tanker carrying jet fuel for the US military was hit by a container ship off northeast England on Monday, with the collision igniting a blaze on both vessels, causing multiple explosions and forcing both crews to abandon ship.
The tanker, which can carry tens of thousands of tons of jet fuel, was at anchor when the smaller container ship struck it, rupturing its cargo tank and releasing fuel into the sea, its operator said. Its owner Stena Bulk gave the same details.
Two maritime security sources said there was no indication of any malicious activity or other actors involved in the incident.
Britain's coastguard said in a statement that 36 crew members were taken safely ashore, with one person hospitalised.
The coastguard said one crew member of the Portuguese-flagged cargo ship Solong remained missing and the search has ended.
But there was still a risk of environmental damage, experts said.
The tanker, the Stena Immaculate, operated by US logistics group Crowley, was carrying Jet-A1 fuel when it was struck by cargo ship Solong while anchored near Hull, Crowley wrote on X.
pic.twitter.com/59X0zh1Cxs
— Crowley (@CrowleyMaritime) March 10, 2025
The tanker is part of a US government programme designed to supply the armed forces with fuel when required. A US military spokesperson told Reuters on Monday it had been on a short-term charter to the US Navy's Military Sealift Command.
The Solong's Hamburg-based owner Ernst Russ said separately that the vessel had been involved in a collision with the Stena Immaculate in an incident which took place whilst the vessel was transiting the North Sea, off the British coast of Humberside.
"Both vessels have sustained significant damage in the impact of the collision and the subsequent fire," Ernst Russ said in a statement.
"13 of the 14 Solong crew members have been brought safely shore. Efforts to locate the missing crew member are ongoing."
The Solong is carrying 15 containers of sodium cyanide, a toxic chemical used mainly in gold mining, and an unknown quantity of alcohol, according to a casualty report from maritime data provider Lloyd's List Intelligence.
Emergency teams sent a helicopter, fixed-wing aircraft, lifeboats and nearby vessels with firefighting capability to the incident on Monday morning.
"A fire occurred as a result of the allision and fuel was reported released," Crowley said. An allision is a collision where one vessel is stationary.
Crowley said there had been multiple explosions on board.
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