Yachts damaged in ship collision

The Alexndre Kurpin collided with five yachts and an ancient jetty

A cargo ship collided with a number of yachts as it headed out of the mouth of the River Wear.

The Alexndre Kurpin, which is registered in Valletta, Malta, struck five vessels moored at Sunderland Harbour on Saturday afternoon.

It is thought the incident may have been caused by heavy rainfall, which caused an unusually fast flow in the river.

The RNLI attended the incident and said no-one was hurt.

There were varying degrees of damage to the yachts involved and there are fears an historic jetty, also hit by the ship, might have to be demolished.