Accident in Pasir Panjang Terminal causes Oil Spill
On June 15, A Netherlands-flagged dredger Vox Maxima hit a stationary Singapore-flagged bunker vessel Marine Honour at about 2.20pm, causing some oil from the damaged cargo tank on board the vessel to spill into the water.
Eighteen response craft have been deployed to contain and clean up the spill, said the joint statement.
Oil has washed up along the coast of several beaches in Singapore, including those on Sentosa island and in East Coast Park, a day after the accident.[1]
Sentosa Cove is also home to several condominiums. Some residents said they woke up to a pungent "kerosene" smell wafting into their apartments instead of the usual sea breeze.[2]
The Singapore Food Agency (SFA) also tries to assure the public that local seafood farms in the Johor Straits are safe to consume and that the oil is of ‘low risk’.[3]
PUB said no oil has been detected near the seawater intake at Jurong Island Desalination Plant, which is closest to the oil spill location. Singapore’s water supply was not affected by the oil spill.[4]
Tackling the oil spill that has struck several parts of Singapore’s coastline has been a challenge due to the ever-changing tides, said a senior executive at the Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA).[5]
Malaysian Authorities also noticed oil spills on the coasts of Johor.
Investigations[edit]
Transport minister Chee Hong Tat said it will take time to complete full investigations into the oil spill involving two ships. He said preliminary findings show that the incident was not due to port congestion, but was instead caused by the sudden loss of engine and steering controls on one of the ships. Authorities have been working to clean up the oil spill, but they said the oil is currently drifting at six kilometres an hour, which makes keeping track of it a problem.[6]
Cleanup Progress[edit]
Authorities in Singapore reported that most of the oil spill had been cleared from the sea and beaches ten days after the incident. The next step of the cleanup is expected to take up to three months, and outdoor activities can resume following extensive water testing. Minister Grace Fu confirmed at a press conference that the weather was safe and Singapore's drinking water was not affected. Minister Desmond Lee noted that it will take time to assess the full impact of Singapore's biodiversity. Minister Chee Hong Tat acknowledged good cooperation with business partners and timely intervention to reduce further losses.[7]
Singapore's oil spill clean-up is now entering its second phase, with a bit more deep cleaning. Crews are targeting areas that are harder to reach, like rock bunds and oil that's trapped deeper in the sand. This comes nearly two weeks after the 14 June shipping crash, which spilled more than 400 tonnes of oil into Singapore's waters. Dr Jani Tanzil, senior research fellow at the NUS Tropical Marine Science Institute, shared how this will impact Singapore's marine habitats in the short and long term.[8]
Wildlife Affected[edit]
2 Kingfishers were taken care of and are slowly recovering but not out of the woods yet. One kingfisher is at the National Parks Board’s Centre for Wildlife Rehabilitation, while another is being taken care of by the Animal Concerns Research and Education Society.[9]