The packages are named after the oil tanker "Erika", which broke apart in a storm in the Bay of Biscay off the coast of France in 1999, spilling over 10,000 tonnes of heavy fuel oil, polluting of coastline. This incident prompted the EU to pass the first two measures addressing maritime safety. The third package was spurred in part by the 2002 sinking of the oil tanker "Prestige" off the coasts of Spain and France. That accident, the largest environmental disaster in Spain's history, was caused in part because Spanish authorities denied the distressed vessel entry to a safe harbour. European Council officials claim that the "Prestige" disaster would not have been possible if the first two Erika packages had been fully implemented and enforced at the time.