Oil tanker, cargo ship collide in North Sea

LONDON -- An oil tanker has collided with a cargo vessel in the North Sea off the coast of East Yorkshire, British media reported on Monday.

A number of people have reportedly abandoned the ships following the collision near the coastal city of Hull, the Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) said in a statement, adding that there are reports of fires on both vessels.

Search and rescue teams from across the region have been deployed to respond to the incident with lifeboats and firefighting teams on the scene. An alarm was first reportedly raised at 9:48 am (0948 GMT).

The tanker involved in the incident is believed to be the US-flagged Stena Immaculate, and the Solong, a Portuguese-flagged container, appears to be colliding with the tanker, according to the BBC, based on marine traffic data.

The Stena Immaculate had traveled from the Greek port of Agioi Theodoroi, and was anchored outside Hull. The Solong, meanwhile, had been sailing from the Scottish port of Grangemouth to Rotterdam, in the Netherlands.