Tanker crash in the Kerch Strait caused a partial leak of oil products

As a result of the crash of tankers "Volgoneft-239" and "Volgoneft-212", fuel oil poured into the sea, drifting to the coast in the area from Cape Panagia to the Tuzla Spit. This was reported in the press service of the Russian government on December 16.

"Presumably, the leakage of oil products occurred partially. A helicopter overflight of the tanker crash area is planned," the Telegram channel said.

The press service added that specialists of FGBU "Morspassluzhba" Rosmorrechflot of the Ministry of Transport of Russia and the Ministry of Emergency Situations of the Russian Federation are completing preparatory work to eliminate oil products. In addition, the coastline from Cape Panagia to the Crimean Bridge is continuously monitored to identify new fuel oil leaks.

Alexander Kozlov, Minister of Natural Resources and Ecology of Russia, and Svetlana Radionova, head of Rosprirodnadzor, have also arrived at the site to assess possible environmental consequences.

Breaking storm: two tankers in distress off the coast of Kerch

The powerful elements snapped both vessels in half

The tanker "Volgoneft-212" suffered a disaster in the Kerch Strait on December 15 due to bad weather. The signal was received by the Ministry of Emergency Situations in the Republic of Crimea and Sevastopol. In the area where the ship is located, there are strong squally winds and sea excitement up to seven points. There were 13 crew members on board, 12 people were rescued, and one person died due to hypothermia.

Later, the regional Emergencies Ministry reported damage to the second tanker, the Volgoneft-239. It added that more than 50 people and 11 units of equipment are involved in the elimination of the incident. The Ministry of Emergency Situations of Russia specified that "Volgoneft-212" ran aground, "Volgoneft-239" also ran aground after being damaged.

All 14 crew members were rescued from the tanker "Volgoneft-239".

The Prosecutor's Office has started checking the wreck of the two tankers. The Russian Investigative Committee's Directorate for Crimea and Sevastopol has opened two criminal cases over the incident.