A 27-year-old molasses tanker escorted to Falmouth in the U.K. after safety defects were found was flagged and classed by the same bodies responsible for the Erika, the tanker that spilled oil on French beaches last month. The Malta-flagged Santana 111, which was detained by French port inspectors, was classed fit to sail by Italian classification society RINA from February 1999, a RINA official said. Erika, which broke up in December causing massive pollution to French beaches, was also registered by Malta and RINA. RINA communications manager Gianfranco Damilano pointed out that the Santana 111 was used for carrying molasses, indicating that if it broke up it would not do the same damage as an oil tanker. "This is not the same as the Erika," he said.