Ships collide in North Sea.

It's still not known exactly what they were carrying, according to the news today.

How on earth did that happen? The ocean is vast yet one ship failed to avoid the other. Once again the wild life / sea creatures will suffer

Apparently one of the ships had nobody on watch.

Not an excuse but it was also rather foggy in this area yesterday morning.

Barleyfields

Apparently one of the ships had nobody on watch.

Let's let the Marine Accident IB carry out their investigations before accusations are thrown around.
One man's missing, presumed dead. So lucky there were not more.
I understand the concerns re pollution, I live on that coastline, and we have a fragile eco system.

Athrawes

How on earth did that happen? The ocean is vast yet one ship failed to avoid the other. Once again the wild life / sea creatures will suffer

DH is a marine surveyor and has been involved in dealing with a number of these events.

The causes wil be the usual ones, no proper watch being kept, drunkeness. These ships are usually undercrewed for economic reasons.

DH dealt with one case where the captainof the offending vessel, claimed that a light house had changed its position and that is why he had hit it!

I am repeating what was reported on the news yesterday Freya. MOnica’s post confirms the likelihood of the reported cause.

Quite shocking. there must have been automatic warning systems that were ignored?

Have just seen a news item, it was stated that the American flagged oil tanker (Stena Immaculate) was stationary at anchor.

The container ship (Solong) was sailing under a Portuguese flag, and didn’t take evasive action to avoid the collision.

Conspiracy theorists are already suggesting that this was a deliberate attack on an American vessel, an American diplomat/politician (sorry didn’t catch their name) refused to deny this claim

I fear that much marine life will be wiped out and the sea will be washing up poisoned sea creatures on North Eastern coastlines for some time.

Who shells out for the clean up?

Sodium Cyanide!!!!!!!

I share your fear Babs. Bempton cliffs are a very important RSPB site and at this time of the year birds will be gathering there to breed. Spurn Point is another significant area for wildlife but there are suggestions that due to yesterday's wind direction, this may well have been spared.

If the potassium cyanide in 3 large containers on the cargo ship has been released then there will be a terrible on-going natural disaster in the sea, the air and especially in the humber estuary only 10 miles away. It is soluble so cannot be contained with any floating device, as used for oil spillages.

I think digital interference/hacking by russia

It is reported to actually be sodium cyanide not potassium cyanide

It is very soluble in water and will inevitably also be airbourne in water vapour coming off the sea

Russia? Could be anyone but more likely an accident caused by negligence.

We could hear the fog horns early in the morning, it was thick fog.

But that is why they all have radar and personel on stand by constantly!

I feel sick about all the wild life and pollution, so tragically sad.

The poor birds are only just recovering from the bird flu of a couple of years ago. I just saw on Sky News that there was no sodium cyanide so that’s a relief. I’m thinking of our local dolphin pod that cover a huge area of the North Sea. When I used to live in Cornwall there was still oil on the beach at Crackington Haven years after that huge oil spill. Isn’t it in the area where lots of dead marine life were washed up on the shore the other year, too?

that coast is full of seals, just being born or about to.

A man has been arrested on suspicion of gross negligence and manslaughter and remains in custody.

I've just heard on Global News that the container ship wasn't carrying any sodium cyanide, according to its owners . Which, if true, is one relief..

Smileless2012

A man has been arrested on suspicion of gross negligence and manslaughter and remains in custody.

Given what has already been reported, probably the captain and there was indeed no one on the bridge.

This is frighteningly frequent cause of this type of accident as DH knows onlytoo well.

As for it being deliberate, no one with any knowledge of the shipping industry would think that.