Maneuvering accident off Norway: a warship collides with an oil tanker

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Thursday November 8, 2018

Lifeboat off the Norwegian coast: in the maneuvering area of ​​the NATO maneuver "Trident Juncture", a frigate from the Norwegian navy strikes a tanker. The warship is badly damaged. The backup job continues.

Upon returning from the NATO "Trident Juncture" maneuver, a Norwegian frigate collided with an oil tanker early in the morning. On board the KNM frigate Helge Ingstad, seven sailors were injured. The warship, 133 meters long and 17 meters wide, has suffered heavy damage and threatens to sink. The backup job is in progress.

The tanker, much bigger, suffered only minor damage. The fuselage and cargo hold apparently remained intact. Oil was not reported for the first time. According to the Norwegian media, the tanker "Sola TS", approximately 250 meters long and 44 meters wide, was in an oil terminal located about 35 km northwest of Bergen, on the way of the North Sea, while he had fallen in uncertain conditions.

The site of the disaster lies off the Norwegian province of Hordaland, at the sight of the oil terminal located at the entrance to Hjeltefjorden. According to the rescue center, at the time of the accident HRS had 137 people aboard the frigate. All the crew was safe, confirmed a spokesman for the Norwegian NTB agency. The crew of the tanker, consisting of 23 men, survived the accident.

The cause of the collision between the huge tanker and the frigate at the forefront of technology is still unclear. "Helge Ingstad", which moves about 5290 tons, is equipped with military radar systems and other electronic navigation devices. The ship was on her way back to Bergen. On board, in addition to the usual fuel reserves, a helicopter hangar, launch containers for torpedoes and anti-ship and anti-aircraft missiles.

The collision occurred, according to authorities around 4am. After the first emergency calls, the local authorities set off a large – scale alarm: all the emergency services available from the surrounding communities were in action. The first step was to help the wounded aboard Helge Ingstad, badly damaged. Subsequently, the escape of the ship was evacuated.

Unit price: 400 million euros

There was talk of a major flood, which obviously could not be stopped. The tugs pushed the frigate commissioned Norwegian clbad Fridtjof Nansen, registered in 2009, carrying the code F313 in shallow waters. There, the ship is lying on the ground with a long list. The first images of the crash show the frigate, while she is half sunk on the rocks off the coast. A tug keeps the damaged warship in position.

The stern of the "Helge Ingstad" is half under the water. A second tugboat pulls an oil barrier around the wreckage. Without the help of tugs, the ship would have capsized and sunk in the opinion of experts. You have no control over the leak, said the Norwegian fire department. The hull of the ship sank deeper into the water during the morning. We still do not know if the frigate can be saved. The unit price is given to the Norwegian media with the equivalent of about 400 million euros.

The region is currently hosting NATO's largest maneuver since the end of the cold war. Troops from 31 states train for the common defense of a large-scale, fictitious attack. The maneuver also involves units of the Bundeswehr. The training scenario also includes troop movements in the air and on the high seas.

Source: n-tv.de