An oil tanker and a vessel collided off the northeast coast of England, according to an emergency responder who scrambled to the scene Monday morning. The first image shared by the BBC showed fire and thick black smoke rising from the ship.
The British Coast Guard said it would “coordinate emergency response to reports of collisions between tankers and cargo ships off East Yorkshire,” saying the alarm was first raised at 9:48am local time.
Rescue helicopters are located in the area, and lifeships have been deployed from many stations along the coast, with “fire-capable” vessels and the Coast Guard said in a statement. The Royal National Lifeboat Agency, a charity that coordinates lifeboats around the UK coast, said: “Many people abandoned the ship after the collision and there have been reports of both ships on fire.
Information from the ship-tracking website, Marine Traffic, appeared to indicate oil tankers, Stena Immaculate and container ship Solong on an intersecting route surrounded by emergency response vessels just off the coast of the estuary near Hull.
This is a developing story. Please check for updates.
