New Zealand: the fight against the oil spill continues while the Rena is sinking

    New Zealand: the fight against the oil spill continues while the Rena is sinking

    The operations to stop the oil spill from the Rena, which ran aground on 5 October on a beautiful coral reef off the northern coast of New Zealand, are complicated. 10 days have passed since the tragic accident and the ship has already lost more than 390 tons of diesel from the 1700 tons of fuel in its belly, which have irreparably spilled into the sea causing one of the worst environmental disasters ever to occur in the country.



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    The operations to stop the oil spill that comes out of the Rena are complicated, off the northern coast of New Zealand. They have passed well 10 days after the tragic accident and the ship has already lost over 390 tons of diesel fuel 1700 tons of fuel present in its belly, which have irreparably poured into the sea causing .



    The wave of crude oil thinned, but his front has expanded and also threatens the locality of Male, the 90 kilometers from Tauranga, while on some beaches other toxic and dangerous materials spilled from 90 containers fallen overboard, including ferrosilicone, a compound that emits flammable gas.

    La position of the cargo, with half of the bow firmly embedded in the reefs and with the stern submerged at a depth of more than 90 meters, and its strong inclination, reached 22%, make operations more and more difficult. The hull of the ship, long 236 meters is heavy 47 thousand tons, is crossed by a worrying crack up to one meter wide in some points, which suggests a possible break, even if "not imminent", as the Authorities explain. But, sooner or later, the worst will be inevitable, also because "the ship is held together only by its internal components”, Explained the spokesman for the New Zealand Navy, Andrew Berry, in a meeting with the residents.

    Drop from a helicopter on the deck of the container ship, rescuers are currently carrying out a risky operation to assess whether and how the more than one thousand tons of oil still in its tanks can be pumped away before the hull breaks completely. It is planned to install equipment and platforms on the upper part of the stern of the ship to create a flat surface on which to work. “There is some hope… they might be able to start pumping fuel tomorrow, but we can't give the timing, that ship is really very dangerous,” said Matthew Watson of the Svitzer rescue company.

    Meanwhile, on the ground, teams of rescuers wearing white overalls are at work to clean up the coasts in the area of Bay of Plenty, famous for being as extraordinary as it is fragile ecosystem, from dense black bubbles and to save birds and other animals weighed down by black slime, while thousands of other specimens continue to die inexorably.



    As for the causes of this umpteenth environmental tragedy, the government says it intends to investigate thoroughly. Above all, he wants to understand how it was possible that the ship ran aground in a coral reef well indicated on the nautical charts and, above all, with favorable weather conditions. Because that tragic October 5th the sea was calm and there excellent visibility.

    Meanwhile, the captain and second officer have been arrested and indicted under the maritime law which covers dangerous activities involving ships or other maritime products. Now they risk up to 12 months in prison and a fine of 5.700 €, a penalty that could appear very small compared to the damage caused. The 25 Filipino crew members, on the other hand, were transferred to a secret location for fear of reprisals by the enraged local population.



    But now we must act quickly, because if the weather conditions are currently favorable, the winds could soon increase, forcing the rescue teams to leave the ship.

    Roberta Ragni

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