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The Russian captain who was involved in the US tanker crash appeared in UK court

The captain of the container ship that collided with a U.S. oil tanker off Britain's East Coast earlier this week appeared before an English court Saturday and was charged with gross negligence.

Vladimir Motin was the captain of the Portuguese flagged Solong, which hit the Stena Immaculate tanker carrying military jet fuel on Monday morning. Motin appeared in Hull Magistrates' Court Saturday, after being charged on Friday night, over the death Mark Angelo Pernia (38), a Filipino national who was a member of the Solong crew.

Amelia Katz, the prosecutor, said that the Solong had been travelling at over 15 knots (27.2 kilometres per minute) when it collided with the Stena Immaculate. The Stena Immaculate was anchored in this position since Sunday evening "over 15 hours prior to the collision occurring".

She stated that Motin, who had taken over the Solong about three hours prior to the incident, was the sole person responsible for the vehicle at the time of collision.

Katz stated that "for a period of more than 40 minutes prior to the collision, Solong was directly on the path for impact with Stena Immaculate which was anchored, stationary."

The prosecutor said: "There was no attempt to communicate from the Solong in order to warn of an impending collision, and the Solong didn't adjust its course or pace at any point."

The Stena Immaculate crew of 23 and the Solong crew of 13 were all rescued. Katz stated that some crew members tried to find Mr Pernia but were unsuccessful.

Motin failed to request bail and was placed in custody.

The collision resulted in a large explosion, and jet fuel was spilled into the ocean. The initial fears of an environmental catastrophe subsided when assessments revealed that the jet fuel was mostly burnt off and no other leaks were detected from either ship.

(source: Reuters)