A maritime accident that discharged hundreds of tonnes of oil in a day will now take months to clean up and reverse its damaging consequences.
Singaporean Minister for Sustainability and the Environment Grace Fu said the oil spill clean-up in the Tanjong and Palawan beaches at Singapore’s Sentosa resort could take three months to finish.
The Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore, together with public and private organizations have deployed more than 700 personnel for the clean-up operation.
The maritime accident which saw Netherlands-flagged dredging boat Vox Maxima hitting Singapore-flagged bunker vessel Marine Honour docked at Pasir Panjang Terminal on June 14 resulted in a massive oil spill.
About 400 tonnes of low-sulfur fuel were discharged into the sea spread into nearby beaches and reached the shores of Malaysia.
The incident caused cruise businesses to suffer losses after several beaches were closed while some residents were forced to leave their homes due to the unpleasant smell.
