The Swedish Coast Guard said that the spill was caused by the movement of the ship’s hull from its grounding site, with the oil escaping the booms that had been put in place.
Despite intense efforts to curb the spill, a small amount of oil has reached the shore at Flatvarp, the coast guard said. Approximately, 7,000 litres of the released oil have so far have been collected by the coast guard vessels.
“We urge the public not to come into contact with the oil regardless of whether it is found in the water or on land,” Roger Gebauer, head of the Coast Guard’s salvage team, said.
The coast guard is also conducting an areal mapping of the spilled oil to determine the scope of the spill and prevent its further spreading.
According to the latest update, the vessel, which has apparently detached from the ground, is floating freely and has been anchored.
Initial reports following the grounding on July 23, indicated that there were 333,000 liters of fuel oil, 38,000 liters of lubricant oil and 34,000 liters of diesel on board the ship.
A further investigation into the ship’s damage and removal of fuel are under preparation.
Previous underwater inspection found extensive damage on the ship including ruptured ballast tanks on the fore part of the ship, a hole in the ship’s bow thruster, as well as heavy metal damages on the ship’s bulb and its port side.
The 2001-built Makassar Highway was on its way from Germany’s port of Cuxhaven to Swedish Södertälje port when it got grounded in the Tjust archipelago. There were no injuries to the crew as a result of the incident. However, the ship’s chief mate has been arrested, according to local media reports.
未知油量已經從損壞的汽車運輸船Makassar Highway 溢出，自上週卡在瑞典海岸Loftahammar 之後。
瑞典海岸警衛隊表示，洩漏事故是由於船體從其接地點移動而引起的。
海岸警衛隊表示，儘管在遏制漏油事件方面做出了巨大努力，但在Flatvarp已有少量石油進入岸邊。到目前為止，大約有7,000升釋放的石油被海岸警衛隊船隻收集。
“我們敦促公眾不要接觸石油，無論是在水中還是在陸地上，”海岸警衛隊打撈隊的負責人羅傑·格鮑爾說。
海岸警衛隊還正在對溢油進行區域繪圖，以確定溢油的範圍並防止其進一步擴散。
根據最新的更新，該船明顯脫離地面，自由漂浮並錨定。
7月23日接地後的初步報告顯示，船上有333,000升燃油，38,000升潤滑油和34,000升柴油。
正在準備對船舶的損壞和燃料清除進行進一步調查。
之前的水下檢查發現船上有大面積損壞，包括船前部破裂的壓載艙，船艏推進器上的一個洞，以及船上燈泡及其左舷的金屬嚴重損壞。
2001年建成的Makassar Highway從德國的庫克斯港港口到瑞典的Södertälje港口，當時它在Tjust群島停泊。事件造成船員沒有受傷。然而，據當地媒體報導，這艘船的主要人員已經被捕。
Information source: World Maritime News Staff; Image Courtesy: Marine Traffic
