Eleni V
The accident
On
6 May 1978, the oil tanker Eleni V was sailing in thick fog from
Rotterdam to Grangemouth with a load of 12,000 tonnes of heavy fuel
oil. The French bulk carrier Roseline ran into her about 10 km off
Norfolk coast in the North Sea. The bow section of the Eleni V was
pierced, releasing about 3,000 tonnes of heavy fuel oil, and then
the 2,000 tonnes contained in the bow were spilled.
The 39 crew members were all rescued by the Roseline, and taken
to France before being repatriated to Greece.
The
stern was successfully towed to Rotterdam where the remaining cargo
was pumped out. It was then sold to Spanish shipbreakers and towed
to Santander in July for demolition.
Response
Given the position of the incident, the oil slicks presented a possible
hazard for the English and Dutch coasts. The response operations
therefore had to be set up rapidly. The main method used for that
purpose was dispersant spraying. 11 vessels were involved in the
operations. A total of 900 tonnes of dispersants were used. However
all the efforts were in vain. Heavy fuel oils, such as those transported
in the Eleni V, are characterised by their high viscosity. They
cannot be pumped out without being heated and dispersants are almost
useless on them.
Oil
eventually reached the coast on the night of 7 May, polluting more
than 35 km of shoreline near Great Yarmouth. Many areas rich in
shellfish and popular tourist beaches were affected. Small amounts
of oil also reached the Dutch coasts. Given the ineffectiveness
of dispersants on this type of oil, different means had to be used
for onshore recovery operations. This involved mainly mechanical
techniques such as the use of front-end loaders to scrape off the
oil.
This was a very slow process and authorities were worried about
the impact on the coming tourist season. Furthermore some rocky
areas and some beaches were inaccessible for these vehicles. In
these places, manual cleaning was the only solution. Oil was shovelled
onto plastic bags for disposal in a designated dumping site.
On
another site, a recovery device using a polypropylene rope which
the oil adheres to removed about 1,000 tonnes of oil-in–water
emulsion. A boom was also used in Southwold harbour to protect the
entrance to the river Blythe. This equipment confined 100 tonnes
of oil and other debris which were then recovered for disposal in
the dumping site.
The bow part of the Eleni V
The forward section drifted away from the collision point and then
sank. As oil remained in this part of the vessel, the authorities
decided to refloat it and to tow it to a sandbank off Lowestoft
where most of the oil was pumped out of the wreck. On 30 May the
bow was towed about 45 km off the coast where it was blown up. The
remaining oil burned.
Point of collision and point of explosion
(clic to enlarge)
Name: Eleni V
Date: 6 May 1978
Location: England, North Sea
Accident area: North Sea, Norfolk coast
Cause of spill: collision
Quantity transported: 12,000 tonnes
Type of pollutant: heavy fuel oil
Quantity spilled: 5,000 tonnes
Ship type: oil tanker
Date built: 1958
Shipyard: John Brown & Co Ltd, Clydebank
Length: 170.39 m
Width: 22.05 m
Draught: 11.89 m
Flag: Greek
Owner: Gladiole Shipping Corporation of Panama
P&I Club: The United Kingdom Steam Ship Assurance Association Ltd
Conclusion
The
total cost of the response operations was £2 million.
This
incident caused the authorities to realise that they were not prepared
for heavy fuel oil spills, which are extremely difficult to respond
to. Their means of dealing with the type of oil in question (dispersants,
pumping device) were inadequate because of the viscosity of oil.
The same incident with crude oil instead of heavy fuel oil would
have been much easier to deal with. They also learnt of the importance
of aerial surveillance with trained observers, which helped to forecast
arrivals of oil slicks on the coast and hence to take adequate measures
to avoid serious damage. Finally, they also had to cope with the
problem of finding a place to send recovered oil and oiled debris.
Sources:
- HOOKE, Norman, 1997, Maritime Casualties 1963-1996, second edition, LLP Limited, Londres
- NOAA, Oil spill case histories 1967-1991, Report No. HMRAD 92-11 to the US Coast Guard Research and Development Center
- IFP, Banques de données sur les accidents de navire ayant provoqué un déversement de pétrole en mer supérieur à 500 tonnes, 1975-1979, Réf. 26 714, Janvier 1979
- Fourth Report from the Select Committee on Science and Technology, "Eleni V", Her Majesty’s Stationery Office, London, August 1978
- Department of Trade, Accidents at Sea Causing Oil Pollution, Review of Contingency Measures, London, 1978
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Last update: April 2006