2000 - Martina

In the morning of March 28, 2000, the chemical tanker Martina collided in bad weather with the cargo ship Werder Bremen in Northern Öresund. The collision caused Martina to break in two halves and the stern part sank immediately. The rest of the ship, with a cargo of 600 tonnes of 30% hydrochloric acid, sank after a few hours. Hydrochloric acid (Class 8) in cargo tanks; watery liquid, irritating vapour, corrosive; IDLH 50 ppm .The weather was extremely bad , with strong winds and heavy snowfall. Two out of seven crew members were saved from the water. Unsuccessful attempts were made to contact possible survivors inside the bow part of the ship before it sank. Due to the weather it was impossible to reach the ship during the first two days. On March 30 both parts of the ship were localized with the help of remotely operated vehicles. The cargo seemed to be intact and there was no immediate risk for oil leakage from the bunker oil. A salvage company was hired to remove the cargo and the bunker . As the hydrochloric acid is not a marine pollutant and not harmful in low concentrations it was decided that a monitored release of the cargo was preferred. However, the ships bunker oil was considered as a threat to the marine environment and should therefore be pumped up. The operations were done on May 20-23, 2000, and were reported to have been successful. No harm was done by the released hydrochloric acid.

In the morning of March 28, 2000, the chemical tanker Martina collided in bad weather with the cargo ship Werder Bremen in Northern Öresund. The collision caused Martina to break in two halves and the stern part sank immediately. The rest of the ship, with a cargo of 600 tonnes of 30% hydrochloric acid, sank after a few hours. Hydrochloric acid (Class 8) in cargo tanks; watery liquid, irritating vapour, corrosive; IDLH 50 ppm .The weather was extremely bad , with strong winds and heavy snowfall. Two out of seven crew members were saved from the water. Unsuccessful attempts were made to contact possible survivors inside the bow part of the ship before it sank. Due to the weather it was impossible to reach the ship during the first two days. On March 30 both parts of the ship were localized with the help of remotely operated vehicles. The cargo seemed to be intact and there was no immediate risk for oil leakage from the bunker oil. A salvage company was hired to remove the cargo and the bunker . As the hydrochloric acid is not a marine pollutant and not harmful in low concentrations it was decided that a monitored release of the cargo was preferred. However, the ships bunker oil was considered as a threat to the marine environment and should therefore be pumped up. The operations were done on May 20-23, 2000, and were reported to have been successful. No harm was done by the released hydrochloric acid.

The hard weather made it difficult to locate the ship at first. It also made diving in the area difficult, which is why the remotely operated vehicles were preferred. The salvage of the bunker oil was successful and the release of the hydrochloric acid proved to be safe, as it had no impact on the marine environment.