Russian ship captain says he didn’t fall asleep before fatal crash with oil tanker

A Russian captain has denied falling asleep behind the wheel of his ship when it crashed off the coast of East Yorkshire.

Vladimir Motin, 59, was on sole watch duty when the oil tanker, Solong, collided with the anchored Stena Immaculate near the Humber Estuary.

The incident in March caused the death of Solong crew member Mark Angelo Pernia, 38.

Motin, 59, from St Petersburg, denies gross negligence manslaughter.

The Old Bailey heard today that Motin became aware of the other vessel when it was about 10 or 12 nautical miles away.

defense barrister James Leonard KC asked: ‘Did you fall asleep at any stage?’

Motin denied this, adding that he neither lost consciousness nor did he pop to the toilet.

‘I never left the bridge at the material time from 8am,’ the defendant said.

The Rotterdam-bound Solong, which was 130 meters long, departed Grangemouth in Scotland at 9.05pm on March 9.

Soloing’s 14 crew members were tasked with carrying alcoholic spirits and some hazardous substances, including empty sodium cyanide containers.

The Stena Immaculate was 183.2 meters long and was transporting 220,000 barrels of JetA1 high-grade aviation fuel from Greece to the UK.

The two vessels crashed on March 10, causing the Stena Immaculate’s aviation fuel to leak, sparking a fire that spread to both ships.

Mark had been helping engineers with repairs from 8am when the vessels crashed at 9.47am

The Filipino national’s body was never recovered after the crash.

The London court was told how Motin used radar to track Solong’s course before smashing into the Stena Immaculate, a US oil tanker.

Motin took his ship off autopilot when it was about one nautical mile away from the Stena Immaculate, steering it at 15 degrees, the court heard.

Asked if he looked at the controls while doing this, the defendant said: ‘Literally, I done it more than 1,000 times.

‘In reality, you don’t look to the button when you press it.’

Motin’s attempts to change course failed, adding that he was told another company ship, the Sanskip Express, had recently suffered a rubber malfunction.

The captain tried to stop and restart the steering gear, as he had been advised to do if he experienced a similar problem.

But ‘nothing helped’, Motin said.

Justice Baker asked: ‘Did you at the time think about slowing down or did you not give it any thought at all?’

Motin replied: ‘I was thinking that I solve the problem soon instead of reversing the engine.’

The trial continues.

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