Two Russian oil tankers suffered accidents this Sunday in the Kerch Strait and spilled oil into the waters of the Sea of Azov, where a strong storm broke out, the Ministry for Emergency Situations reported this Sunday.
These are the ‘Volgoneft 212’, which ran aground after suffering damage to the bow, and the ‘Volgoneft 239’, which is adrift, according to the source on Telegram. Both ships would have suffered irreparable damage that prevents them from sailing and reaching port, and that could cause them to sink in the Azov, which bathes both Russian and Ukrainian territory.
On the first of the cargo ships there were 14 crew members, of which thirteen have already been rescued and one has died, the emergency services have told the RIA Nóvosti agency. Two tow boats and two Mi-8 helicopters are involved in the rescue operations of both tankers, the second of which would have another 14 sailors on board.
The cause of the shipwrecks could have been both the strong gusts of wind prevailing in the area and the strong waves, inclement weather that would have caused a navigation error by the crew.
Official sources confirmed that, due to the accident, there has already been a spill of petroleum products in the Azov, under the control of the Russian army since 2022. Both tankers would jointly carry, according to preliminary sources, about 8,000 tons of fuel.
A brigade of specialists has been sent to assess the risk of contamination in the area bordering the Crimean peninsula and take the necessary measures to stop the spill.
Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered this Sunday to create a working group to liquidate the consequences of the oil spill in the Kerch Strait, which separates the Black and Azov seas. “The working group will be in charge of organizing rescue efforts and also liquidating the consequences of the fuel spill,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitri Peskov told the local press.
The group will be headed by Deputy Prime Minister Vitali Saveliev and will include the Ministers of Emergency Situations and Natural Resources and Ecology. The latter Ministry reported that it is currently assessing the magnitude of the contaminated surface that, according to experts, could reach the beaches in the area and damage the ecosystem of the coast near the Crimean peninsula, annexed by Russia in 2014.
Environmentalists consulted by the press warn that if the black spot reaches the coast, the levels of pollution and its severity will be even greater, although the emergency services, they warn, must also avoid the sinking of ships at all costs.
