The vessel was last owned and operated as Swanland by Torbulk, a company based in Grimsby, and was registered in the Cook Islands as a flag of convenience.

[3] Swanland sank in a gale force 8 storm in the Irish Sea 10 miles off the Lleyn Peninsula, Gwynedd at approximately 0200 on Sunday 27 November 2011.

22 Squadron RAF flying out of RAF Valley and Royal Marines Barracks, Chivenor, A Royal Navy Sea King from 771 Naval Air Squadron based at RNAS Culdrose, Irish Naval Service patrol ship LÉ Róisín and an Irish Air Corps Casa maritime patrol aircraft, and Irish Coast Guard helicopters from Dublin, Waterford and Sligo, and other ships in the area – MT Bro Gazelle, MT Monsoon and MT Keewhit.

[5] On 11 December 2011 the BBC reported that Swanland had been subject to repeated safety concerns due to unsafe loading and unloading practices that may have placed stress on the hull.

[6] The Marine Accident Investigation Branch (MAIB) conducted an inquiry into the sinking and published its report in June 2013 [7]