Video shows moment container ship crashes into US oil tanker in North Sea

Newly obtained video footage reveals the moment container ship Solong crashed into US oil tanker Stena Immaculate off the coast of East Yorkshire on Monday morning.

The tanker was carrying Jet-A1 fuel for the US Navy as part of a US government programme designed to supply American armed forces with fuel when required, a military spokesman told Reuters.

On Monday, maritime security sources said there was no indication of any malicious activity or other actors involved in the incident. UK authorities have also said they have so far found no evidence of foul play.

The Solong's captain was arrested and the vessel's owner has said he is a Russian national.

Humberside Police arrested the 59-year-old on suspicion of gross negligence manslaughter on Tuesday.

The rest of the crew were Russian and Filipino nationals, according to German shipping company Ernst Russ.

Humberside Police said investigators had started a criminal probe into the cause of the collision and were working with the Maritime and Coastguard Agency.

Humberside detectives are working with the UK's Marine Accident Investigation Branch, and it has been reported that authorities from the US and Portugal will lead the investigation into what happened.

The Stena Immaculate was stationary and at anchor on the River Humber when it was struck by the smaller Solong, causing huge fires and explosions.

It was initially feared that the Solong was carrying sodium cyanide. However, the vessel's owner Ernst Russ said four containers on the vessel had previously held the hazardous chemical, but there was none on board at the time of the crash.

One missing, presumed dead

One person, a crew member on the Solong, remains missing and is presumed dead.

The coastguard rescued 36 people after the alarm was raised at 9.48am on Monday.

The owner of Stena Immaculate, Stena Bulk, said on Wednesday its 23 crew members were American and in "good health".

The coastguard said the Solong had been "towed to a safe location" while the Stena Immaculate was "remaining at anchor in its original location".

Salvage workers "will conduct on-board assessments of the vessels as soon as they are safe to board," chief coastguard Paddy O'Callaghan said.

Solong failed safety checks

It has emerged that the Solong failed steering-related safety checks last year.

Inspection documents from July show officials warned the ship's "emergency steering position communications/compass reading" was "not readable".

It was among 10 issues highlighted during an inspection by Irish officials.

Other problems included the alarms being "inadequate", survival craft not being properly maintained and fire doors being "not as required".

Another inspection in Scotland in October 2024 found two issues with the Solong, including that lifebuoys were "not properly marked".

Ernst Russ said: "All deficiencies that were detected during routine port state control inspections of the Solong back in 2024 were promptly rectified".

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Environmental impact not as severe as feared

The Stena Immaculate was carrying 220,000 barrels of jet fuel in 16 segregated cargo tanks - at least one of which was "ruptured" during the collision, shipping company Crowley said.

But it said the jet fuel spill was having a "limited" impact.

The potential environmental impact seems to be less severe than initially feared.

Most of the spilt jet fuel has evaporated or burned off, Crowley said in a post on X.

There also seems to have been no loss of engine fuel from either vessel and both are expected to remain afloat despite a gaping hole in the side of the Stena Immaculate and earlier fears the Solong would sink.

There are no visible flames on either ship and the Solong, which was drifting, has now been secured by tugs.

(c) Sky News 2025: Video shows moment container ship crashes into US oil tanker in North Sea