Gibraltar Struggles To Stop Oil Spill From Offshore Cargo Ship After Collision With Tanker

The cargo ship, which is carrying 215 tonnes of heavy fuel oil, 250 tonnes of diesel fuel and 27 tonnes of oil, was moored to prevent it sinking in the Bay of Gibraltar. All 30 people on board, including 24 crew members and 6 inspectors, were evacuated. The Gibraltar Port Authority (GPA) confirmed on Thursday that there had been an oil spill, a small amount of which escaped from the perimeter of a boom created after the accident. “The rescue team on board located the source of this leak in two tank vents from the vessel’s storage tanks. All vents had previously been sealed, but the seal on the two vents was lost in the rumpling of the vessel,” the GPA said. statement. The statement said divers on scene were able to restore the seals and GPA was in the process of stopping the release of oil from the vents. Authorities collected the free-floating oil that has already vented, while sorbents were deployed to absorb the oil. On Wednesday night, the government said there were signs the cargo ship had “not broken up as such, but has crumpled” and that the “primary concern” was to offload the low-sulphur heavy fuel oil on board as soon as possible. followed by diesel and oil. The government added that “there is no way to remove the fuel in question from the vessel earlier in a way that does not pose a risk to the environment”. Greenpeace told CNN it is concerned as the area of ​​the incident is a highly polluted area due to the volume of ships passing through. Greenpeace activist Francisco del Pozo, who has been monitoring the situation, told CNN that “as it stands, there is not a major oil spill.” According to Gibraltar authorities, it will take around 50 hours of pumping with the operation being carried out “under the strictest supervision to avoid any leakage”. Additional oil spill equipment is expected to arrive in Gibraltar from the UK on Sunday, the statement said. The Government of Gibraltar has said that the timetable for salvaging the hull of the cargo ship OS 35 is likely to be extended longer than the previous expectation of a few weeks.

title: “Gibraltar Struggles To Stop Oil Spill From Offshore Cargo Ship After Collision With Tanker Klmat” ShowToc: true date: “2022-10-26” author: “Abel Waggoner”

The cargo ship, which is carrying 215 tonnes of heavy fuel oil, 250 tonnes of diesel fuel and 27 tonnes of oil, was moored to prevent it sinking in the Bay of Gibraltar. All 30 people on board, including 24 crew members and 6 inspectors, were evacuated. The Gibraltar Port Authority (GPA) confirmed on Thursday that there had been an oil spill, a small amount of which escaped from the perimeter of a boom created after the accident. “The rescue team on board located the source of this leak in two tank vents from the vessel’s storage tanks. All vents had previously been sealed, but the seal on the two vents was lost in the rumpling of the vessel,” the GPA said. statement. The statement said divers on scene were able to restore the seals and GPA was in the process of stopping the release of oil from the vents. Authorities collected the free-floating oil that has already vented, while sorbents were deployed to absorb the oil. On Wednesday night, the government said there were signs the cargo ship had “not broken up as such, but has crumpled” and that the “primary concern” was to offload the low-sulphur heavy fuel oil on board as soon as possible. followed by diesel and oil. The government added that “there is no way to remove the fuel in question from the vessel earlier in a way that does not pose a risk to the environment”. Greenpeace told CNN it is concerned as the area of ​​the incident is a highly polluted area due to the volume of ships passing through. Greenpeace activist Francisco del Pozo, who has been monitoring the situation, told CNN that “as it stands, there is not a major oil spill.” According to Gibraltar authorities, it will take around 50 hours of pumping with the operation being carried out “under the strictest supervision to avoid any leakage”. Additional oil spill equipment is expected to arrive in Gibraltar from the UK on Sunday, the statement said. The Government of Gibraltar has said that the timetable for salvaging the hull of the cargo ship OS 35 is likely to be extended longer than the previous expectation of a few weeks.