The captain of a cargo ship that collided with a US tanker is a Russian national who remains in UK police custody, the vessel’s owner says, as it emerged that the ship failed several safety checks in 2024.
The 59-year-old man, who has not been named by authorities, was arrested by police in northeast England on Tuesday on suspicion of manslaughter by gross negligence over the collision. He has not been charged.
Shipping company Ernst Russ, which owns the Portugal-flagged cargo vessel Solong, said the ship’s 14 crew were a mix of Russian and Filipino nationals.
UK authorities say they have found no evidence of foul play in the crash.
Humberside police said detectives were conducting inquiries alongside partner agencies.
The UK Marine Accident Investigation Branch is also involved in investigating what caused the Solong, bound from Grangemouth, Scotland, to Rotterdam, Netherlands, to hit the stationary tanker, which was anchored about 16km off the English coast.
The investigation is being led by the US and Portugal, the countries where the vessels are flagged.
Port inspection documents show the Solong failed steering-related safety checks in Dublin, Ireland, in July, with the vessel's "emergency steering position communications/compass reading” unreadable.
Inspectors found a total of 10 deficiencies, including “inadequate” alarms, survival craft “not properly maintained” and fire doors “not as required."
An inspection in Scotland in October found two other deficiencies.
The ship was not detained after either inspection.
The cargo ship collided on Monday with MV Stena Immaculate, a tanker transporting jet fuel for the US military in the North Sea off eastern England on on Monday, setting both vessels ablaze.
One sailor from the Solong is missing and presumed dead.
The other 36 crew members from the two vessels were brought safely ashore, with no major injuries.
The Solong was drifting and still on fire Wednesday, but is likely to remain afloat rather than sink, officials said.
The 183-metre Stena Immaculate was operating as part of the US government’s Tanker Security Program, a group of commercial vessels that can be contracted to carry fuel for the military when needed.
The collision sent jet fuel pouring into the sea and sparked fears of significant environmental damage.
Environmentalists said that oil and chemicals posed a risk to sea life, including whales and dolphins and to birds, including puffins, gannets and guillemots that live on coastal cliffs.
