Two elderly people have died after a shipping collision caused a spillage of toxic chemicals in Poole Harbour. The man and woman, who are yet to be identified, are in their eighties and are believed to have died from lindane poisoning after leaping from their passenger ferry when it was hit by a cargo vessel.
Lindane – which is used as an insecticide and a pharmaceutical treatment – was spilled into the sea after the cargo vessel it was on collided with a passenger ferry crossing the harbour.
Over 70 people have been admitted to hospital amid concern that both passengers and rescue teams who have come into contact with the water are at risk from lindane poisoning.
To avoid further contamination, the Environmental Agency has advised rescue teams to wear protective clothing and have constructed chemical boons in the water, but there are fears that it is too late for the wildlife in the harbour.
Coastguards are closing off the area and warning residents against fishing, walking their dogs or otherwise going near the beach and the harbour for at least 48 hours.
Chief Loader for Sandbanks Ferries, Nick Gosney, said “There’s a big hole in the other ferry, and our ferry’s chain snapped so the boat can’t move. I’ve never seen anything like this before.”
It was the maiden voyage for the cargo vessel El Taurus, which was headed towards Cherbourg in France.
There were eight crew members and 20 trucks of cargo on board, and it is not yet known how much of the chemical has been spilt or what other cargo has been lost.
The two ferries are still stationary and emergency services are attempting to evacuate people and get both boats moving as soon as possible.
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