Black smoke billows out as fire burns at oil tanker off Germany’s Baltic Sea coast

A seven-member crew has been evacuated and taken ashore after a fire broke out in the engine room of an oil tanker off the coast of Germany, however, efforts continue to put out the blaze and prevent an oil spill on the Baltic Sea coast, according to reports from the German Sea Rescue Association (Deutsche Gesellschaft zur Rettung Schiffbrüchiger – DGzRS), which is responsible for search and rescue services on the North and Baltic Seas.

According to German authorities, a notification about a fire breaking out on a tanker in the Bay of Mecklenburg between Kühlungsborn and Warnemünde in the Baltic Sea was received by radio shortly after 9 a.m. on Friday, October 11, 2024. Black smoke was visible far out to the coast even though the vessel was about 2.5 nautical miles (around 4.5 kilometers) from the coast.

Based on the information available to Havariekommando, Germany’s Central Command for Maritime Emergencies (CCME), the tanker, named Annika, carries approximately 640 tons of oil. The Maritime Rescue Coordination Centre (MRCC) Bremen, operated by the German Society for the Rescue of Shipwrecked People (DGzRS), took extensive measures to save the crew and extinguish the fire.

The Wilma Sikorski sea rescue boat, stationed at the DGzRS station Kühlungsborn, rescued all seven crew members from the 73-meter-long German oil and chemical tanker northeast of Kühlungsborn within an hour of the initial fire notification. Afterward, they were taken to a hospital as a precaution since several had minor injuries. The sea area and the airspace within a 3-nautical mile radius around the stricken vessel were closed.

As the Annika tanker was still burning, the Arkona multi-purpose ship from the Waterways and Shipping Administration at the DGzRS station in Warnemünde, and the Baltic deep-sea salvage tug chartered by the Federal Ministry of Transport embarked on firefighting measures to stop the fire from getting out of control and causing a potential oil spill or explosion.

In the meantime, several firefighting teams were on their way to the ship by helicopter as the emergency command took over the operation. Firefighting teams from Rostock and Kiel on board the Arkona multi-purpose ship that was moored alongside the Annika tanker looked into the possibility of boarding the tanker while additional emergency services, including those from the Lübeck fire department, were en route to the ship.

Other vessels and parties involved in the overall operation encompass the Albert Wegener fireboat of the Rostock Professional Fire Department; the Federal Police’s  Neustadt operational ship;  the Fehmarn and MV 4 water police boats for security purposes; the VB Baltic tug; a search and rescue (SAR) helicopter of the naval aviation; Federal Police helicopter; and oil reconnaissance aircraft of the naval aviation.

While the tanker’s engine room was still burning, the firefighters from Rostock, Kiel, and Lübeck assessed the situation and decided to continue fighting the fire at a berth on land. After Rostock was chosen as the berth, the stricken vessel was expected to be towed there. The condition of the ship, still being monitored by nautical experts, was assessed as stable, thus, the tow connection was established to bring the stricken vessel to Rostock.

The last update indicates that the fire has not been put out despite multiple ships fighting to extinguish it for hours. The German authorities did confirm that the fire on the Annika oil tanker was largely brought under control by the fire departments of Rostock and Kiel and is not spreading any further, enabling the tanker to be towed to the Rostock bulk cargo port by a private salvage company with two tugboats for further firefighting operations.

The representatives of the salvage company, who were reportedly on board the stricken tanker, also assessed the situation as stable. While the Baltic emergency tug and the Arkona multi-purpose vessel accompany the towing convoy, Kiel fire brigade personnel are tasked with providing a fire watch during the towing operation. Neither exact nor estimated time of arrival (ETA) has been disclosed for the tanker’s final destination, thus, it is unclear whether the ship has already come to the port of Rostock.

However, confirmation has been received that the evacuated crew members from the Annika oil tanker have been released from the hospital and are being taken care of by specialists from the German Seamen’s Mission. They will receive psychosocial care as well if deemed necessary.