The Russian Ministry of Transport stated on the 2nd that two oil tankers that faced distress and were stranded in the Kerch Strait recently led to the leakage of approximately 2400 tons of petroleum products, and an expert working group has been established to guide the cleanup efforts.
According to a China News Service report, on December 15, 2024, the Russian oil tankers "Volga Oil 212" and "Volga Oil 239" encountered extreme weather with strong winds and huge waves in the Kerch Strait, leading to distress, damage, and stranding. A considerable amount of vessel-borne fuel oil was subsequently leaked in the accident area. According to Russian emergency department reports, the two oil tankers carried about 9200 tons of fuel oil in total. On December 26, the Russian Emergency Situations Ministry announced that the incident was classified as a federal-level emergency and initiated related measures.
The Russian Ministry of Transport posted on social media on the 2nd that the emergency response command unit in Krasnodar Krai announced at a coordination meeting that after detailed inspections by the Russian maritime rescue department, it was determined that a total of four heavy oil tanks on the two oil tankers were damaged in the accident. No other parts of the two tankers’ hull showed visible damage or leakage. Experts confirmed that the final oil product leakage amounted to about 2400 tons, which is much lower than the initial estimate provided by the tanker captain’s report.
The Russian Ministry of Transport stated that the emergency incident in the Kerch Strait waters is the world’s first M100 heavy fuel oil spill accident. The primary method for removing the pollution is to collect it onshore when the oil is washed onto coastal areas. The emergency response command unit decided to form an expert working group whose tasks include selecting the most effective methods for cleaning the sand contaminated by oil and transporting it to temporary storage sites, and choosing effective techniques to clean the contaminated pebbles and beaches.
The Russian Emergency Situations Ministry posted on social media on the 2nd that the newly discovered areas contaminated by the leaking oil in the Crimea region had been addressed that day, clearing more than 4 kilometers of coastline and collecting over 2 tons of contaminated sand. Since the accident occurred, Russian professionals and volunteers have inspected 1803 kilometers of coastline, more than 48.5 kilometers of contaminated coastline have been cleaned, 229 tons of contaminated sand have been collected and removed, and 168 birds have been rescued.