Washington, Jan 25 (DPA) Work continued Sunday to clean up hundreds of thousands of litres of oil spilled out into the harbour of Port Arthur, in the US state of Texas, after a tanker collided with a tugboat Saturday.
Initial Coast Guard estimates put the spill at 1.7 million litres, though exact levels were not yet known. Thanks to still waters and quick containment, the oil seemed to be contained in a 3.5-kilometre long stretch of the harbour, which should aid cleanup efforts.
There were no injuries in the collision. But there were evacuations from much of the surrounding area out of fear of possible contamination by the oil.
The exact amount of oil spilled because the gash in the tanker’s hull is near the waterline, which means less oil might have escaped than stated in initial estimates.
