Popular tourist beaches on Singapore's Sentosa island were closed on Saturday. Black goo floats on the water and sand. The reason is an oil leak from a nearby shipping terminal.
As one of the witnesses told the Reuters news agency, the oil-stained water and sand on Tanjong beach were cordoned off with tape.
– An oil leak was noticed. Cleaning is in progress. Stay out of the water – says the inscription on the beach sign.
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Oil spill. “It's very rare to see things like this.”
– It's surprising and unexpected. This is our sixth time in Singapore and every time we came here the weather was perfect, sunny, great water. We saw on the news that something like this had happened recently and we wanted to see it. It's really impressive and surprising, it's very rare to see things like this. I even came in swimming shorts, reported Daniel Blanc, a tourist from France.
A message on the island's website, quoted by Reuters, said that the waters on the beaches of Tanjong, Palawan and Siloso were closed for cleaning, and swimming and sea activities were not allowed.
An oil spill spread from the Pasir Panjang terminal, located less than 10 kilometers from the island popular with tourists and locals, after a Dutch dredger struck a Singapore-flagged bunker on Friday afternoon. The Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore said in a statement on Friday evening that some oil from a damaged cargo tank on the bunker had leaked into the water and “the damaged cargo tank has been isolated and the leak contained.”
In an update on Saturday, authorities said oil slicks were observed at the Pasir Panjang terminal and along Tanjong, Palawan and Siloso beaches. The office announced that it had deployed 16 oil spill response units.
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Main photo source: Reuters