Stena Bulk has stated that it continues to work closely with Crowley and UK agencies following the incident when the containership Solong struck Stena Immaculate on 10 March in the North Sea, as captain is set to appear before the Central Criminal Court in April.
According to the statement, as of 16 March, the third-party salvage team has confirmed that damage resulting from the containership Solong striking the Stena Immaculate was limited to one cargo tank containing Jet A-1 fuel and one ballast tank containing sea water.
At the time of the allision, the Stena Immaculate was carrying 220,000 barrels of Jet A-1 fuel. Based on the assessment by the salvage team, it has been confirmed that 17,515 barrels of Jet A-1 fuel have been lost due to the impact and fire. The remaining cargo and bunkers are secure.
Furthermore, the captain of the containership has been charged with gross negligence manslaughter. As reported, he did not enter a plea and was remanded in custody by at Hull Magistrates’ Court to appear before the Central Criminal Court in London on 14 April.
We are immensely proud of our crew members who, before being forced to abandon ship, demonstrated exceptional professionalism by ensuring fire monitors were active to provide boundary cooling water to the adjacent cargo tanks. This decisive action significantly limited the damage to only the cargo tanks directly impacted by the allision.
…said Erik Hånell, President & CEO, Stena Bulk.
In addition, the UK Maritime and Coastguard Agency’s position remains that there continues to be no cause for concern for pollution from the tanker. The salvage process is ongoing and will require further time to complete fully.
A comprehensive salvage and tow plan will be finalised in collaboration with the appropriate authorities.
