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A gas tanker sank to the bottom of the ocean following a collision with a $51 million superyacht owned by Shop.com CEO JR Ridinger. The 207-foot Utopia IV collided with the Tropic Breeze gas tanker on Christmas Eve off the coast of the Bahamas.
"The catastrophic force of the collision pierced the stern of the tanker, causing the tanker to sink to the ocean floor at an estimated depth of 2,000 feet," the gas tanker's owner Maritime Management told Caribbean National Weekly.
Another superyacht was in the area and helped rescue all the crew members from the Tropic Breeze.
"Due to the depth of the ocean at the location of the sinking, it has been determined that the tanker cannot be safely salvaged," the company added.
Maritime Management said the environmental damage should be minimal because the tanker was carrying "non-persistent materials," including automotive and maritime gas. It noted that those materials "are lighter than water and will evaporate if exposed to surface air."
It is unknown if Ridinger was on the yacht at the time or if he will face charges for the collision. Investigators are currently trying to determine the cause of the crash.