An oil spill caused by a dredger hitting a parked cargo tanker has blackened parts of Singapore's southern coastline, including the popular resort island of Sentosa, raising concerns it could pose a threat to marine life as cleanup efforts continued on Sunday.
The Dutch-flagged dredger Box Maxima collided with the Singaporean fuel supply ship Marine Honor on Friday, damaging the ship's cargo tanks and causing an oil spill into the sea. The Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore said in a statement late Saturday that the leak from the vessel had been contained and that oil spilled from the damaged tanker had been treated with dispersants.
Tides have washed the treated oil along the coastlines of Sentosa and other southern islands, nature reserves and public beach parks. Sentosa, home to one of Singapore's two casinos, golf courses and Southeast Asia's only Universal Studios theme park, remains partially open as cleanup efforts continue. Authorities have deployed 18 vessels to contain the spill and erected nearly 1,500 metres of container fencing. Conservationists and biologists are actively monitoring the environmental damage, and local conservation group Marine Stewards has reported photos of dead fish, otters and birds affected by the oil.
(This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
