MSC Alexandra file photo.
An Iranian Very Large Crude Carrier and a large containership collided in the busy Singapore Strait late Wednesday night, causing damage to both ships but luckily no injuries or reports of major pollution.
The Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore says it was notified just before midnight that the VLCC Dream II and the MSC Alexandra containership had collided in the Singapore Strait about 3 kilometers (1.8 miles) southeast of Sebarok Island.
The Dream II is owned by Iran’s state-owned National Iranian Tanker Company.
The supertanker sustained damage to its bow in the collision. The MSC Alexandra took the hit at its port quarter, causing a giant hole and the loss of containers overboard. Both vessels are in stable condition and anchored in Singapore waters, the MPA said. Below is photo showing damage to MSC Alexandra (more incident photos added below):
#MSC ALEXANDRA #damaged & lost 10 #containers after contact with #crudeoil tanker DREAM II off #Singapore last night pic.twitter.com/eBB1x5fx6Z
— ROB PERKINS (@lloydscasualty) August 4, 2016
The MPA said that prior to the collision its Port Operations Control Centre alerted the Masters of both vessels of the risk of collision. An AIS recreation shows the vessels as they collided:
MSC Alexandra reported that 10 empty containers fell overboard during the incident, including four which fell onto the deck of VLCC. The MPA said it immediately issued navigation broadcast to warn vessels of the presence of floating containers in the vicinity of the incident site, while deploying survey and salvage teams to recover the containers.
There were no injuries or oil pollution reported.
The 319,999 DWT Dream II (formerly named Danesh) is owned by Iran’s National Iranian Tanker Company and was built in 2008.
The MSC Alexandra is owned by Geneva, Switzerland-based Mediterranean Shipping Company and was built in 2010. The vessel has a TEU capacity of 13,998 and measures nearly 396 meters in length. AIS data shows the ship had just departed Singapore for Chiwan, China.
Both vessels are Panama-flagged.
Incident Photos
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