Fuel oil from Russian tanker wreck in Black Sea may reach coasts of Odesa and Mykolaiv
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- Mariia Khamitsevych
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10:40, 09 January, 2025
«Volgoneft 212», photo from WikipediaFuel oil spilled as a result of the Russian tanker accident in the Black Sea may reach the coasts of Odesa and Mykolaiv.
This was stated by Dmytro Pletenchuk, a spokesman for the Ukrainian Navy, during a telethon.
«Unfortunately, the current is arranged in such a way that it is likely to reach even our Odesa and Mykolaiv coasts. There is such a possibility,» he stressed.
Pletenchuk noted that Ukraine cannot influence civilian vessels militarily, so Russia continues to use the Kerch Strait for its own needs.
«We do not influence civilian shipping, in the sense of fire, because Ukraine is a civilised country. So they continue to overload, they have little choice. They are well aware that without oil exports and without receiving revenues, it will be even more difficult for them to wage this war,» the navy spokesman added.
The accident of the Russian tankers
As a reminder, on 15 December, near Cape Panagia in the Kerch Strait, a tanker «Volgoneft» ran aground, and 4 tonnes of fuel oil could have leaked into the sea. Later it became known that another tanker, the «Volgoneft-239», began to sink next. Its hull broke into two parts after being hit by a wave.
The leakage of fuel oil from two Russian tankers in the Black Sea caused a large-scale environmental disaster. The damage caused to the Black Sea ecosystem exceeds $14 billion.
Animal rights activists have recorded 32 deaths of cetaceans, including whales, dolphins and porpoises, following the accident with two Russian oil tankers «Volgoneft-212» and «Volgoneft-239». The deaths are most likely related to the fuel oil spill, which has already reached Feodosia, Alushta and Sudak.