Malta-flagged tanker in collision

Two oil tankers, one of them Maltese-flagged, collided yesterday in the English channel off Dover but there were no injuries and no sign of any oil spill, the coastguard said.

The tankers involved in the collision in one of the world's most heavily used shipping lanes were the Willy and the Shakhdag. Willy is Gibraltar-flagged and Shakhdag is Malta-flagged, according to Lloyd's Casualty Reporting. There was no immediate indication of what caused the collision on a clear day in calm seas.

"A helicopter... has overflown the area.

"There is no sign of pollution, the damage appears to be only slight and there are no reports of any injuries," a spokesman for Dover coastguard said.

Lloyd's Casualty Reporting said it was "not a serious incident".