The
emergency response is escalating over an oil spill from a container ship
grounded on the Astrolabe Reef near Tauranga,
amid fears the vessel could break up.
Rena, a Liberian-flagged ship, is stuck fast to the reef after running aground early Wednesday.
Four birds have been found dead in the water near the slick, which stretches some 5km northwest along the Bay of Plenty coastline - sparking the mobilisation of an oil wildlife response team.
On Thursday, emergency personnel tried to use a dispersant dropped from helicopters into the oil slick, but Maritime New Zealand (MNZ) says it has proven ineffective.
MNZ National On Scene Commander Rob Service said it was not clear how much oil had leaked but the fuel tanks, carrying 1700 cubic metres of fuel, remained intact.
He said the leak was difficult to stop due to "considerable damage" to the ship.
"There are no breaches to the fuel tanks, but it appears the leaks are from pipework and various places on the ship."
Transport Minister Steven Joyce told media on Thursday there was a risk the ship would break up.
A spokeswoman for Mr Joyce said: "Unfortunately the situation is very volatile and will likely deteriorate in the coming days."
NZN
Rena, a Liberian-flagged ship, is stuck fast to the reef after running aground early Wednesday.
Four birds have been found dead in the water near the slick, which stretches some 5km northwest along the Bay of Plenty coastline - sparking the mobilisation of an oil wildlife response team.
On Thursday, emergency personnel tried to use a dispersant dropped from helicopters into the oil slick, but Maritime New Zealand (MNZ) says it has proven ineffective.
MNZ National On Scene Commander Rob Service said it was not clear how much oil had leaked but the fuel tanks, carrying 1700 cubic metres of fuel, remained intact.
He said the leak was difficult to stop due to "considerable damage" to the ship.
"There are no breaches to the fuel tanks, but it appears the leaks are from pipework and various places on the ship."
Transport Minister Steven Joyce told media on Thursday there was a risk the ship would break up.
A spokeswoman for Mr Joyce said: "Unfortunately the situation is very volatile and will likely deteriorate in the coming days."
0 comments:
Post a Comment