Questions remained, however, about how the accident happened and there were fears that any spill could harm the marine environment and coastline, home to seals, porpoises and several species of protected waders and seabirds.
The UK Coastguard halted search operations late on Monday after rescuing all other crew members -- 36 in total -- from both ships.
“The Solong is still alight and the fire on board the Stena Immaculate has greatly diminished,“ the UK Coastguard said.
An investigation has begun into the accident, which occurred at around 09:48 am (0948 GMT) on Monday when the Portuguese-flagged cargo ship ploughed into the US-flagged tanker, anchored about 13 miles (18 kilometres) off the northeastern port of Hull.
Crowley, the US-based operator of the Stena Immaculate, said the crash had “ruptured” the tank “containing A1-jet fuel” and triggered a fire, with fuel “reported released”.
“There doesn’t appear to be any suggestions of foul play at this time,“ Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s spokesperson told reporters on Tuesday.
The Stena Immaculate was carrying around 220,000 barrels of jet fuel, according to maritime information service Lloyd's List Intelligence.
“We are able to confirm that there are no containers on board with sodium cyanide (inside),“ German shipping company Ernst Russ said.
A spokesman for the Marine Accident Investigation Branch said a team sent to Grimsby, across the Humber estuary from Hull, was “gathering evidence and undertaking a preliminary assessment”.
Environmental concerns
UK Housing Minister Matthew Pennycook said the investigation was being led by US and Portuguese authorities, since the vessels were sailing under their flags.
“The good news is... it’s not like a crude oil spill,“ Ivor Vince, founder of environmental risk advisory group ASK Consultants, told AFP.
But Paul Johnston, a senior scientist at the Greenpeace Research Laboratories at Exeter University, said: “We are extremely concerned about the multiple toxic hazards.”
There are several nature reserves along the Humber estuary.
“We don’t want to see wildlife dying. It’s a chain of events. it affects the wildlife which could then affect other (species)”, she added.
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