Damaged tanker sinks
'No pollution danger'
A chemical tanker, severely damaged in a collision with a Maltese-registered ship in the Channel between France and Britain, has sunk but its cargo poses no pollution danger, the UK coastguard said yesterday.
The Marshall Islands-flagged Ece, carrying phosphoric acid, capsized and sank 30 miles northwest of the island of Guernsey while it was being towed to France by a tug.
The 22 crew members had all been rescued following the collision with the Maltese-registered bulk carrier General Grot-Rowecki in the early hours of Tuesday. The latter was carrying a cargo of phosphate and after an inspection by French authorities, the vessel was allowed to sail to its destination port of Police in Poland.
The 8,131-tonne Ece sank in 70 metres of water, a coastguard spokesman said, and a one-mile exclusion zone had been imposed around the area.
French divers who inspected the wreckage on Tuesday found that the hull and cargo were still intact.
"Any released cargo will have only very localised effects," the spokesman said.
A pollution surveillance aircraft has flown over the scene and spotted some oil on the sea surface from the tanker's fuel.
"This is expected to evaporate and disperse," the spokesman said, adding French and British salvage teams would meet to discuss plans for the wreck.
Following the accident, the European Commission called on the European Council to start discussing its proposal to improve the liability of maritime transport with immediate effect.
Malta has agreed that Marshall Islands will assume the role of lead investigating state whereas Malta will be actively involved in the investigation as a substantially interested state.