Container ship severely damaged in North Sea crash to be towed to Scotland

A stricken container ship which was involved in a collision with a tanker in the North Sea is to be towed to Aberdeen, according to the Coastguard.

The Solong collided with the anchored tanker Stena Immaculate about 12 miles off the coast of East Yorkshire on March 10, leaving one man missing, presumed dead.

Thousands of plastic pellets, called nurdles, were released from ruptured containers on the Solong and began washing up on beaches on the Norfolk coast, where a clean-up operation is continuing.

On Tuesday, chief coastguard Paddy O’Callaghan said: “Salvage of the Solong has progressed to enable its relocation to the Port of Aberdeen for safe berthing.

“Solong will be under tow by one tug and accompanied by another tug, plus a vessel with counter-pollution measures should they be required.

“Tug and tow are scheduled to arrive at Aberdeen later this week.

“The Stena Immaculate remains in a stable condition with salvage ongoing.

“HM Coastguard continues to support local authorities which are leading the onshore response to pollution, including plastic nurdles, in Norfolk and Lincolnshire.

“HM Coastguard will continue to keep the overall situation under close review.”

King’s Lynn and West Norfolk Council said last week it had begun removing the nurdles – which are not toxic but could harm wildlife if ingested – focusing initially on a stretch of beaches between Holme-next-the-Sea and Old Hunstanton.

Also last week, the National Trust said nurdles had begun to appear on Brancaster Beach in Norfolk and the RSPB confirmed they have washed up at the charity’s reserve at nearby Titchwell.

The company which owns the Solong has said that no containers holding plastic nurdles are thought to have been lost over the side of the ship.

It said the pellets are believed to have been released from some of the smaller containers during the intense fires which took a week to bring under control.

The crew of the Stena Immaculate have been praised by the vessel’s owners for activating firefighting procedures before they abandoned ship.

The firm said that only a small proportion of the jet fuel being carried by the tanker was released in the crash.

A total of 36 people were rescued from the ships following the incident but a sailor from the Solong – named as 38-year-old Filipino national Mark Angelo Pernia – is missing and presumed dead.

The Solong’s captain, Vladimir Motin, 59, of St Petersburg, Russia, has appeared at Hull Magistrates’ Court and at the Old Bailey charged with gross negligence manslaughter and was remanded in custody.