Russian oil tanker splits in half

Russian oil tanker splits in half

news.bbc.co.uk

About 1,300 tonnes of fuel oil have leaked near the Black Sea after a Russian oil tanker split in half - in a storm that sank two other cargo ships.

The vessel was at the Kerch Strait, between the Azov and Black Seas, where it was battered by 5m (16ft) waves.

Efforts to rescue the 13 crew, as well as eight missing from another ship, are being hampered by bad weather.

(visit the link for the full news article)

Article mentions the Spain disaster in 2002 is comparable; these oil spills are becoming common, they should check the weather a little more before thinking they could make a voyage. Sounds simple, but 16 feet waves are pretty large for (seemingly) fragile ships to handle.

news.bbc.co.uk
(visit the link for the full news article)

on cnn mentions:

"Maxim Stepanenko, a regional prosecutor, told Vesti 24 that the oil tanker -- designed during Soviet times to transport oil on rivers -- was not built to withstand a fierce storm."

so as stated before, why not check the weather forcasts!!

Unreal, I was exactly right! They're hauling massive amounts of poisonous material around the world and they can't replace the vessels?!? Madness, how much these oil companies make, they need regulations, this is getting out of hand how badly they're polluting Earth and not even thinking twice.... LARGE amount of wildlife have been harmed and the rates of extinction really RISE for rare birds in these cases, let alone, the FACT that extinction rates are at record levels.

"They", freaking *they* -- starting to get sick of these pronouns. Obviously, the UN is a corrupt organization, but They should start doing something to get international issues working FOR the environment.

Who gives a hoot about world gov't threats, why can't they stop w/ the special-interests and start doing something legit?! They have people quoted as saying they'll use "food as a weapon" and the sex scandals and climate change issues, makes me wanna throw away all relation to the first world and live on beach somewhere.

reply to post by anhinga
Money and greed trump the environment and other people. Fines are cheaper (if there are any) then doing the right thing in the long run.

It seems obvious that there are many people, it might be the majority, on the planet who are only concerned with their own cause or existence.

The same storm in the Black Sea and Azov Sea also sank four freighters, three carrying sulphur and one with a cargo of scrap metal.

Source: Reuters



This beautiful blue planet is getting raped and destroyed for greed and profit.


[edit on 11-11-2007 by Copernicus]

This is terribly sad news.

My gawd, this must have been one hell of a storm! O_O

The ship actually broke in three pieces. Last time I checked, 1,800 tonnes of oil had leaked. There was 4,000 tonnes in total and still leaking. The crew was safe. Another ship in the same area also sank in this storm.

At least six ships were hit by the storm and several crew are missing.


RIA Novosti: At least six Russian vessels hit by storm in Kerch Strait



And now there's a new storm warning...


RIA Novosti: Russia's emergency ministry issues new storm warning in Azov Sea -1

Because of the cold temperature the oil is not floating, so they say there's no ecological threat at the moment.


RussiaToday: Storm wrecks ships in Black Sea - two dead, many missing

reply to post by Hellmutt


You mean the oil is sinking? That's good news. The waters beneath 200 meters in the Black Sea are toxic, packed with hydrogen sulphide. Nothing lives there.

reply to post by Beachcoma


That's what they say. But right now the weather is extremely bad and causing problems for the rescue operations. More ships might be in distress.


edit to add another link:
RussiaToday: Heavy storms hit Black Sea - 2 dead, many missing



[edit on 2007/11/11 by Hellmutt]

BBC reports that up to 2,000 metric tons of fuel oil has leaked from the Volganeft-139. It was at anchor when it broke apart.


BBC: Russian oil tanker splits in half

At least five ships sunk and many more damaged. Five confirmed dead and at least twenty still missing...


From RussiaToday:

Day two of fierce storm -- five dead, five ships sunk

A massive air and sea search is continuing in the Black and Azov Seas for at least 20 missing sailors. A dozen ships and four helicopters are scouring the waters off the south of Russia. 5 bodies have been recovered earlier. A huge storm has sunk at least 5 ships and severely damaged many more.

Two more videos.


Russia: Black Sea Eco Disaster


20 more feared dead in Black Sea disaster