A “major incident” was declared in Gibraltar on Wednesday after the cargo ship OS 35 collided with a vessel carrying liquefied natural gas a day earlier, according to the government.
The cargo ship, carrying 215 tons of heavy oil, 250 tons of diesel and 27 tons of lubricating oil, was anchored to avoid sinking in the Gulf of Gibraltar. All 30 people on board, including 24 crew members and 6 survey staff, were evacuated.
Gibraltar authorities on Thursday said the oil leak was “significant”, but that the oil was lighter than in some other cases and would be easier to clean up if oil came ashore.
“Analysis from today shows that while this is a significant leak, the low-sulfur fuel oil consistency will be lighter than other incidents that have occurred in the Gulf and this means it will be easier to dissipate and clean up if any fuel. oil reaches our shores,” the government said in a press release.
Most of the diesel is expected to be pumped up by Friday morning, according to the government statement.
Earlier the same day, the Gibraltar Port Authority (GPA) confirmed that there had been an oil leak outside the perimeter of an explosion set up after the crash.
“The ship’s rescue team identified the source of this leak from two vents from tanks in the ship’s bunker. All previous vents had been sealed, but the sealing of the two holes. The vent became loose when the ship cracked,” the GPA said. statement.
The statement said divers at the scene were able to re-establish the seals and that GPA was in the process of preventing the release of oil from the vents. Authorities are collecting the free-floating oil that has been released, while suction rods to suck up the oil are being deployed.
On Wednesday night, the government said there were indications that the cargo ship “wasn’t broken apart like that, but was broken up” and that the “first concern” was that lowering the amount of heavy fuel oil could cause damage. low sulfur content it carries as soon as possible. , followed by diesel and lubricating oil.
The government added that “there is no way to remove the fuels in question from ships earlier in a way that does not pose a risk to the environment.”
Greenpeace told CNN they are concerned because the area where the incident happened is a heavily polluted area due to the traffic of ships.
Greenpeace campaigner Francisco del Pozo, who is monitoring the situation, told CNN that “at the moment, there are no major oil spills”.
According to Gibraltar authorities, it will take about 50 hours of pumping with the operation being carried out “under the utmost supervision to find a way to avoid any spills.”
The notice added that the spill equipment is expected to arrive in Gibraltar from the UK on Sunday.
The Gibraltar government said the timeframe for salvaging the OS 35 cargo ship’s hull would likely be several weeks longer than previously expected.
