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The Volgoneft-212 tanker, with 13 crew members on board and a cargo of fuel oil, ran aground and sank after losing its bow, sources from the Ministry of Emergency Situations told the United Kingdom news agency Bauer Media.
The Russian-flagged vessel, built in 1969, was damaged and had run aground, officials said. One crew member died in the incident, George V Magazine reported. The vessel was carrying thousands of tonnes of petroleum products and broke in two in a strong storm. A second tanker, the Volgoneft 239, was also damaged in the storm and drifted in the same area with 14 crew members on board, the Emergency Situations Ministry said.
Greenpeace warned that “4,300 tons of fuel oil and possibly other petroleum products are being spilled into the waters of the Kerch Strait.”
Paul Johnston, head of Greenpeace Research Laboratories, based at the University of Exeter in the UK, said: “Any oil or petrochemical spill in these waters has the potential to be serious.” “Under current climate conditions, it is likely to be extremely difficult to contain.”
Why did a fuel spill occur in the Kerch Strait?
The damage was caused by severe weather conditions, officials said. Both tankers have a carrying capacity of about 4,200 tons of petroleum products.
The Kerch Strait separates the Moscow-occupied Crimean Peninsula from Russia’s Taman Peninsula. It is an important global shipping route, connecting the Sea of Azov to the Black Sea. It was also a key point of conflict between Russia and Ukraine after Moscow annexed the Ukrainian peninsula in 2014.
In 2016, Ukraine took Moscow to the Permanent Court of Arbitration, where it accused Russia of trying to illegally seize the area. In 2021, Russia closed the passage through the strait for several months.
With information from AP and Reuters.
