An oil tanker on Sunday collided with a cargo ship in the Gibraltar straits, but there was no danger of oil pollution, Spanish authorities said, according to DPA. The oil tanker's hold, containing 39,000 tons of crude oil, was not damaged in the accident south of the Iberian peninsula, according to the authorities. The cargo ship, carrying scrap metal, submerged only partially as it settled onto a sandbank. The collision of the two Danish-flagged ships occurred in British territorial waters off the harbour of the Crown colony Gibraltar. The cargo ship had just left the harbour and came so close to the approaching tanker that neither ship was able to avert a collision, the authorities in the nearby Spanish port town Algeciras said. The oil tanker moored after the accident with its crew staying onboard. The cargo ship meanwhile had a leak, causing water to enter the cargo hold. The 26 crew members were evacuated to safety.
