Tanker and cargo ship collide

Collision off the north Kent coast involved two foreign ships

A tanker and a container ship have collided in the North Sea off the Kent coast, coastguards have said.

The 3,200-tonne French tanker Pointe du Castel and the 2,000-tonne Dutch container Pride of Veere "clipped" each other as they crossed 25 miles north of Ramsgate at 0400 BST.

Thames Coastguard said the ships - each with 10 crew members on board - suffered only minor damage.

Both sailed on to port under their own steam and no-one was injured in the incident.

The Pride of Veere was sailing from Rotterdam, in the Netherlands, and was due to be inspected on arrival at Tilbury docks.

The Pointe du Castel was heading through the English Channel back to France, where it would then be inspected.