A CYPRIOT container ship collided with a Greek tanker carrying jet fuel some 30 km off the Dutch coast at Scheveningen leaking highly flammable kerosene into the sea, the Dutch coast guard said yesterday.
Peter van Oorschot, a spokesman for the Dutch Coast Guard, told Reuters the tanker Mindoro had leaked jet fuel from a five-by-six metre hole just above the water line.
“The leakage has now stopped, they have pumped the fuel from a leaking compartment to another tank on board. What is left is a stream of fuel on the water and there is danger of explosion,” Van Oorschot said.
Oil was floating on the water over an area of 3 km to 0.5 km, but an oil dispersion vessel at the scene said it was not needed to clean the oil as it would evaporate.
Van Oorschot could not say how much jet fuel the tanker was carrying or how much was lost, but added only a small amount of fuel appeared to have been spilled. He said the weather had been clear, the wind modest and waves were some one metre.
Mariska Verbeij at the Dutch Transport Ministry said there was no danger to public health or the environment.
Police spokesman Ed Kraszewski said the cause of the collision was not yet known and an investigation could take at least several days.
Dutch authorities were working to get the tanker, which is now anchored at the accident site, to either the Amsterdam or Rotterdam port by nightfall. The owner of the vessel is looking to contract a salvage operator, Van Oorschot said.
The Cypriot container ship Jork Ranger has a crew of 12 and was given permission after the accident to continue its journey to Rotterdam.
The tanker had been heading for anchorage off Scheveningen before a final destination of Amsterdam, home to Schiphol Airport, police said.
Police are already on board the tanker to question the crew and check its instruments and will start inquiries on the container ship when it reaches the Rotterdam port.
The North Sea is home to some of the world’s busiest shipping lanes and Rotterdam is one of Europe’s biggest ports, but no delays to shipping were reported, police said.
A Port of Rotterdam spokesman said the container ship had been en route to Rotterdam from St Petersburg.
According to the digital-seas website the Mindoro has a width of 42 metres and a length of 244 metres.
Marinetraffic.com says the Jork Ranger has a length of 141 metres and a width of 22 metres.
