Oil Leaking From Tanker At Key Global Shipping Route After Collision

The collision happened as the vessel OS 35, loaded with steel bars and carrying over 400 tonnes of fuel, was moving to exit the bay.

A bulk carrier that collided with an LNG tanker off Gibraltar started leaking fuel oil, authorities in the British overseas territory on the southern tip of the Iberian peninsula said on Wednesday.

The collision on Tuesday forced the closure of the Gibraltar port for four hours. It was later fully reopened.

The hull of the bulk carrier OS 35 broke, authorities said, but the vessel has not separated into two parts.

"There has been a substance leak from the vessel as a result of the movement arising from its break. Initial investigations indicate that this is lube oil," the Gibraltar government said in a statement.