Photo Journal of an Oil Spill Cleanup

Warning the public.Documentation of an Oil Spill

The Malaysian-flagged MT Bunga Kelana 3 was carrying about 62,000 tons of light crude oil, the country’s coast guard said. Singapore port authorities said the spill measured about 4 kilometers by 1 kilometer and was located 6 kilometers south of Singapore’s southeastern tip. Singapore and Malaysia activated oil-spill response companies and a clean-up operation involving 20 craft was under way. There were no reports of injuries among the 50 crew members.

A view of the damaged MV Waily, a bulk carrier registered in St Vincent and the Grenadines, after a collision with a Malaysian-flagged oil tanker in waters between Malaysia and Singapore May 25, 2010.

mvwaily

A close-up view shows the damage on the Malaysian flagged MT Bunga Kelana 3 after its collision with a bulk carrier in the waters between Malaysia and Singapore on May 25, 2010,

mtbungakelana

The incident happened in the Traffic Separation Scheme (TSS) of the Singapore Strait, 13 kilometers (8 miles) from the tip of the island nation, the city-state’s Maritime and Port Authority (MPA) said. The spill, equivalent to about 18,000 barrels, is dwarfed by the approximately 175,000 barrels of oil that has poured into the Gulf of Mexico since the deadly April 20 offshore explosion that sank the Deepwater Horizon rig.

SignboardWarning the public.

A storm is coming.A storm is coming.

Oil slick along the shoreline.Oil slick along the shoreline.

Oil slick that contaminated the sand.Oil slick that contaminated the sand.

Workers digging up the sand to put it into the black plastic bag.Workers digging up the sand to put it into the black plastic bag.

Overlooking the mess.Overlooking the mess.

Rubbish that were washed up together with the oil.Rubbish that were washed up together with the oil.

Bags were left one side for collection.Bags were left one side for collection.

Workers in actionWorkers in action.

Close up of the dry part.Close up of the dry part.

Hardworking personnel cleaning up the sand under the scorching sun  for hours.Hardworking personnel cleaning up the sand under the scorching sun for hours.

One of the longer stretch of oil clearance in East Coast Park.One of the longer stretch of oil clearance in East Coast Park.

More black plastic bags.More black plastic bags.

Sucking out the oil.Sucking out the oil.

Overlooking the canal to see how the oil was control for further  floating in.Overlooking the canal to see how the oil was blocked.

Material to soak up the oil.Materials used to soak up the oil.

Working under the bridge.Working under the bridge.

Personnel moving in line to clear the oil.Personnel moving in line to clear the oil.

Unsung heroAn unsung hero.

Unsung hero.Yet another unsung hero.

One of the worst area that requires many personnel to clear.One of the worst areas that required many personnel.

Another long stretch of affected area.Another long stretch of affected area.

A man clearing the sand.A workman clearing the sand.

Close up of the floating oil on the sea.Close up of the floating oil on the sea.

Oil rush.Oil rushing the shore.

Picking up rubbish from the wash up.Picking up the washed up rubbish from spill.

Oil wave.Oil waves pounding the shore.

More than 50 workers were deployed for the cleansing operations within a short time. Later 450 more workers joined to speed up the process. Sand contaminated by the oil sludge was disposed of immediately. Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore had six response craft on site to manage the spill at all time. via: Ricky Gui

It was less than a tenth the size of Singapore’s worst such oil spill since the MPA was created. As much as 29,000 tons of heavy marine fuel oil leaked into Singapore waters from the tanker Evoikos in 1997 after it collided with the Orapin Global tanker.

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