An oil slick hundreds of meters long is spreading off the coast of Gibraltar. It concerns heavy oil from the freighter OS 35, which collided with a liquid gas tanker on Monday evening and ran aground (krone.at reported). The oil film has now spread beyond the oil barriers that have been erected.
By Friday morning, nearly 200 tons of diesel had been pumped out of a total of 492 tons of fuel and lubricants aboard the damaged 178-metre OS 35. The government of the British Overseas Territory in the southernmost tip of Spain announced this on Twitter. The day before, a large amount of oil had spilled from the ship. Authorities and environmentalists fear an oil spill.
Ship threatens to break in two
Despite floating barriers, the first oil streaks reached the beaches of Gibraltar, as can be seen in pictures by local broadcaster GBC. Environmentalists warned of serious consequences if not all fuel was pumped out quickly. The ship’s hull has already become unstable and threatens to break in two. The salvage of the wreckage could take weeks, the government of Gibraltar emphasized.
LNG tanker largely undamaged
The OS 35, loaded with steel, was en route to the Dutch port of Vlissingen when it rammed the liquefied gas carrier Adam LNG at anchor on Monday and then ran aground off the beach due to water ingress. The 289-meter gas tanker flying the flag of the Marshall Islands was largely undamaged in the collision.
According to the police, a crew member of the OS 35 has been arrested. According to media reports, which a spokesman for the government of Gibraltar initially did not confirm on Friday, it would be the captain of the ship flying the flag of the island state of Tuvalu. Gibraltar’s head of government, Fabián Picardo, told Spanish TV channel RTVE that the captain had defied the harbourmaster’s orders.
Source: Krone
I’m Wayne Wickman, a professional journalist and author for Today Times Live. My specialty is covering global news and current events, offering readers a unique perspective on the world’s most pressing issues. I’m passionate about storytelling and helping people stay informed on the goings-on of our planet.
