Dave Fleming
12-14-2002, 08:14 AM
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December 14, 2002
Cargo Ships Collide in English Channel
By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
Filed at 7:27 a.m. ET
LONDON (AP) -- Two cargo ships collided Saturday in the English Channel, injuring no one but causing one of the vessels to sink with 2,862 cars on board.
The Norwegian-registered Tricolor was resting on the bottom of the channel, but was only partly submerged because the tide was low, the French coast guard said.
The Tricolor collided with the Bahamas-registered container ship Kariba about 30 miles east of Ramsgate, England, at around 1:30 a.m. in heavy fog, said Britain's Maritime and Coastguard Agency.
Per Ronnevig, a spokesman for the Tricolor's owners, Wilhelmsen Lines, said the ship had been carrying the cars and 77 cargo containers. It picked up its cargo in Zebrugge, Belgium and was bound for Southampton, on England's south coast, he said.
The British coast guard said the damaged 577-foot Kariba was returning to Antwerp, Belgium escorted by a Belgian warship and the French coast guard.
It had originally been traveling from Antwerp to Le Havre, France.
A spokesman said the 627-foot Tricolor began to list badly just after the collision and its crew of about two dozen boarded a lifeboat. Another ship brought them safely to Dunkirk, France.
Workers planned to put a barrier around the Tricolor to prevent fuel from spreading if it leaks, but the French coast guard said none had. Ronnevig said the ship was carrying 2,000 tons of fuel oil.
``All the lives have been saved and our action now will involve providing nautical safety around the wreck,'' said a statement from the French government.
It said the accident should not interfere with shipping in the area.
Copyright The Associated Press | Privacy Policy
December 14, 2002
Cargo Ships Collide in English Channel
By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
Filed at 7:27 a.m. ET
LONDON (AP) -- Two cargo ships collided Saturday in the English Channel, injuring no one but causing one of the vessels to sink with 2,862 cars on board.
The Norwegian-registered Tricolor was resting on the bottom of the channel, but was only partly submerged because the tide was low, the French coast guard said.
The Tricolor collided with the Bahamas-registered container ship Kariba about 30 miles east of Ramsgate, England, at around 1:30 a.m. in heavy fog, said Britain's Maritime and Coastguard Agency.
Per Ronnevig, a spokesman for the Tricolor's owners, Wilhelmsen Lines, said the ship had been carrying the cars and 77 cargo containers. It picked up its cargo in Zebrugge, Belgium and was bound for Southampton, on England's south coast, he said.
The British coast guard said the damaged 577-foot Kariba was returning to Antwerp, Belgium escorted by a Belgian warship and the French coast guard.
It had originally been traveling from Antwerp to Le Havre, France.
A spokesman said the 627-foot Tricolor began to list badly just after the collision and its crew of about two dozen boarded a lifeboat. Another ship brought them safely to Dunkirk, France.
Workers planned to put a barrier around the Tricolor to prevent fuel from spreading if it leaks, but the French coast guard said none had. Ronnevig said the ship was carrying 2,000 tons of fuel oil.
``All the lives have been saved and our action now will involve providing nautical safety around the wreck,'' said a statement from the French government.
It said the accident should not interfere with shipping in the area.
Copyright The Associated Press | Privacy Policy