Maersk LPG vessel collides with Liberian bulk carrier off Venezuela
The 'Maersk Holyhead,' a liquid petroleum gas carrier, collided Sunday evening with the Liberian-flag Panamax bulk carrier 'Pequot' 55 miles off the Maracaibo Lake channel on the western coast of Venezuela.
Initial reports from Maersk said the Venezuelan officers and crew of the 'Maersk Holyhead' were safe, and that the vessel was alongside the gas discharge port of El Tablazo. A bunker fuel tank 'is presently leaking into the sea,' Maersk said in a statement.
The five-year-old 'Maersk Holyhead,' built by Mitsui Shipyard in Japan, is registered in Venezuela, and has been employed for four years by the Venezuelan national oil company for coastal trading.
As of midnight Monday, no information was available from Maersk or Venezuelan authorities about the condition of the 'Pequot.'