The captain of a container ship that struck an oil tanker transporting fuel for the U.S. military on Monday was a Russian citizen, the company that owns that ship said on Wednesday.
The man was arrested in northern England on Tuesday on suspicion of gross negligence manslaughter. One crew member is missing and presumed dead after the crash, which forced both crews to abandon ship.
There was no immediate indication that the captain’s nationality played a role in the crash. Russians make up about 10 percent of international seafarers, according to the International Chamber of Shipping. British lawmakers said on Tuesday that they had no evidence to suggest foul play.
Ernst Russ, the company that owns the container ship, named the Solong, said in a statement that the vessel’s captain was a Russian citizen, while the rest of the crew members were Russian and Filipino.
“Ernst Russ can confirm that the master of the containership Solong has been detained by Humberside police in the U.K.,” the company added in a separate update. “The master and our entire team are actively assisting with the investigations.”
The crash on Monday morning, about 13 nautical miles off the northeastern coast of England, set off a series of explosions and a fire onboard both vessels that sent plumes of black smoke rising into the air. Given that the Solong plowed into the tanker, called the Stena Immaculate, in daylight hours while the tanker was stationary, experts have raised questions about why radar and alert systems did not prevent the crash.
One member of the Solong’s crew was presumed dead after an extensive search was called off late on Monday, though all other crew members escaped unharmed.
On Tuesday, the Humberside Police, the force responsible for the area, said that a 59-year-old man had been arrested on suspicion of gross negligence manslaughter in connection with the crash. As is typical practice under British law, the police declined to provide further details about his identity.
The Stena Immaculate was carrying jet fuel and was being operated by the U.S. Navy at the time of the crash, according to Britain’s transportation minister, Mike Kane, who briefed Parliament about the episode on Tuesday. Mr. Kane was also asked about whether the crash appeared to be intentional.
“Whether there was foul play is, I think, speculation; there is no evidence to suggest that at the moment,” Mr. Kane said, adding that the British government was in touch with its American and Portuguese counterparts. Still, he added, “something did go terribly wrong” to cause the crash.
The Stena Immaculate is owned by Crowley, a Florida-based logistics company, and had been chartered on a short-term basis to serve U.S. government operations.
