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Date Published: 03/08/2023

Gibraltar ship captain arrested following devastating oil spill

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The Port of Gibraltar has partially reopened and the oil doesn’t appear to have reached beaches in Andalucia

Gibraltar ship captain arrested following devastating oil spill

The Royal Gibraltar Police (RGP) have arrested the captain of Gas Venus, the tanker that caused a serious oil spill in the Bay of Algeciras on Tuesday August 1.

The devastating accident happened during a bunkering or refuelling in front of the western anchorage of the Gibraltar port, a large-scale operation local Ecologists in Action group insists shouldn’t be carried out so close to shore.

According to official sources, the 56-year-old captain of the vessel is now being investigated for a crime of pollution after around 2,000 litres of oil spilled into the sea due to an overflow in the ship’s tank.

Meanwhile, the work to contain the spill continues and the port has been partially reopened. Immediately after the accident, the popular beaches of Camp Bay and Rosia Bay were put on "red alert" and bathers were advised to exercise caution if going in the water.

For the moment, the oil spill is confined to Gibraltar waters and no trace of hydrocarbons has reached the neighbouring Spanish beaches of La Línea de la Concepción, Los Barrios and Algeciras.

The worst of the stain reached a protected marine area although the Rock authorities confirmed that, so far, "no contaminated birds have been detected."

“Early indications are that the impact of the oil spill has been limited to the area of Camp Bay and Rosia Bay. There have not been any sightings of any free floating streaks of oil moving away from this area, however, this is being continuously monitored and may change with the tides,” the GPA added.

Although the port of Gibraltar has partially resumed its activity, the bulk of its business comes from supplying ships and bunkering activities, which are currently still temporarily prohibited. The Strait of Gibraltar is a major player in the global movement of goods and receives more than 110,000 ships every year, according to the General Directorate of the Merchant Marine.

In other news: WATCH: Wild boars invade packed Marbella beach

Image: Royal Gibraltar Police

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