Fuel oil begins leaking from the stern of a tanker in the Black Sea

Crimea has been engulfed in pollution following a fuel oil spill from a Russian tanker that ran aground in the Black Sea.

More than 16 kilometres of coastline have been affected, including Kerch, Yevpatoria, Yalta and the Saksky district.

Approximately 5,000 tonnes of fuel oil remain on the seabed, forming a viscous mass. The incident occurred when petroleum products began leaking from the stern of the tanker Volganefteft-239, part of which became stuck in shallow waters near Taman during the accident.  

A month has passed since the accident. Meanwhile, Russian authorities are not rushing to address the consequences.

At the same time, activists in Odesa Oblast are rescuing birds that ended up in the disaster zone and arrived in the region with their feathers covered in fuel oil.