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Published Tuesday, February 13, 2024
The Atlantic Empress, a 330 foot unmanned vessel was found in the Caribbean submerged and engulfed in flames carrying thousands of gallons of oil.
According to the Prime Minister of Trinidad and Tobago, Keith Rowley, the oil spill is so large it caused a national emergency. Oil has appeared near Antigua and Barbuda in the Caribbean. The spill has already reached many other beaches in the Caribbean as crews struggle to get it contained.
The malfunction that caused the vessel to sink is still unknown, as well as the owner of the large ship. It was also not immediately clear exactly how much oil had leaked into the waters.
The mysterious 330 foot vessel capsized Wednesday, having no sign of any crew or ownership, and made no SOS calls.
Tobago Emergency Management Agency (TEMA) has posted dozens of pictures of the sunken vessel on social media showing crews scrambling to clean up the mess and contain the oil.
Divers currently still cannot patch the leak in the ship, and according to Farley Augustine, who toured the area, they don't know how to remove the remaining oil from the ship, either.
Tobago is a very popular place for tourism, so officials are worried about the incredible impact of this oil spill, and so far there have been no comments from “Environmental watchdogs”, in Rowley’s words.
Just how dramatically this will affect tourism is still unclear, but a cruise ship carrying 3,000 people docked in Tobago on Sunday.
The cost of this dilemma is currently unknown, but it is said that there are “Some not-so-insignificant costs being incurred,” just from responding from the incident.
Multiple countries have offered to help, but the discussions about those topics are still ongoing. There have also been hundreds of volunteers who have been helping since Thursday, trying to plug the leak in the ocean.
Images and videos released by the government show civilians working late into the night on Sunday to save their coastal beaches from more damage.
“Cleaning and restoration can only begin after we have the situation under control. Right now, the situation is not under control,” said Rowley.
Rowley also added that this has misfortuned the country with a national security crisis.
SOURCES:
An Offshore Oil Spill Has Caused A ‘National Emergency,’ Trinidad and Tobago Prime Minister Says. Article.
The Agony of the Atlantic Empress, a Large Sinking Oil Tanker in Flames. Trinidad Tobago. Article.
Mystery Ship Capsizes in the Caribbean Sea, Creating Massive Oil Spill. Article.
Night Time Clean Up Efforts- www.facebook.com. Post.
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