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July 13, 2007

Ibiza (Day 2)

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© OCEANA / Juan Cuetos

 

We are still in Ibiza. Early in the morning, we go out to see what the situation is like.

The area where the largest slick was located is now much more dissolved and dispersed, forming only some small fuel patches, and most of it has been removed by the cleaning ships.

The marine rescue vessel is still in the area where the accident took place carrying out operations; trying to find the best method to extract the fuel from the holds of the “Don Pedro”. The divers are also here, sealing what appears to be the last crack from which the fuel is leaking.

As soon as we reach the area, we begin to notice the same strong smell of fuel we noticed the first day. A little further on, the sea turns oily and fresh oil slicks can be seen ahead, probably from leakage during the night and early morning. They extend for more than one-half kilometer in length and various dozens of kilometers in width. We see that the origin of the spill is clearly the wreck.

The slicks are not far from the coast and the winds push them to the beach area of d’En Bossa, on the southeast coast of Ibiza.

During the day, new oil slicks reach the coast forcing the local government to close 3 beaches.

Although we still see some areas and animals stained by fuel, the impact does not seem too serious. We hope it will not get any worse and, above all, that the fuel does not settle on the sea floor where it would be very difficult, if not impossible, to remove it, directly affecting the species present there.