Dr. ThomasTo ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he has conducted an investigation into the safety implications for shipping of the sinking of the MV Ardlough, on 28 September, off the Lancashire coast; and what special container cargoes were released to the sea following the sinking.
§ Mr. PortilloOne of the Department's marine surveyors is investigating the circumstances surrounding this accident. To maintain safety for shipping, the wreck of the vessel is marked by three buoys and a racon radar beacon.
Twelve freight and tank containers are known to have floated free when the vessel sank. Of the eight washed ashore, two tanks contained ethyl acetate and dimethyl acetamide, both listed as dangerous substances. It is likely that the remaining containers eventually sank but it is not thought that they contaned dangerous substances. Other dangerous substances declared on the manifest are assumed to be trapped in the vessel. None of these is considered to pose a significant threat to the environment.