World

Oil spill in Trinidad after mystery shipwreck

Published: 04:02 PM,Feb 11,2024 | EDITED : 08:02 PM,Feb 11,2024

View of the oil spill at Rockly Bay in Tobago island, Trinidad and Tobago, on February 10, 2024. An oil spill caused by a mysterious ship that ran aground in the waters of Trinidad and Tobago on February 7 spread along some 15 kilometers of coastline, just when the country expects to receive thousands of tourists in the middle of the carnival season. (Photo by Clement Williams / AFP)
 
View of the oil spill at Rockly Bay in Tobago island, Trinidad and Tobago, on February 10, 2024. An oil spill caused by a mysterious ship that ran aground in the waters of Trinidad and Tobago on February 7 spread along some 15 kilometers of coastline, just when the country expects to receive thousands of tourists in the middle of the carnival season. (Photo by Clement Williams / AFP)
Emergency workers in Trinidad and Tobago were scrambling to clean up a massive oil spill after a mysterious vessel ran aground near the Caribbean island earlier this week. At least 15 kilometers of coastline have been affected by the disaster, and authorities are considering declaring a national emergency, Farley Augustine, chief secretary of the Tobago House of Assembly, told reporters. Environmental officials say the spill has damaged a reef and beaches on the Atlantic coast, boding ill for the island's resorts and hotels, the lifeline of the local economy during Carnival season. - AFP