Beyond the devastation to the local ecosystem, the oil spill also threatens vital tourism revenue
A oil spill due to the wreck of an “unknown” ship last week it continues to be “not under control” at Trinidad and Tobagothreatening the start of the carnival tourist season in the exotic archipelago island nation of Caribbean.
“Cleanup and restoration work cannot begin until the situation is under control. For now, it is not,” Prime Minister Keith Rowley said during a press conference, officially declaring a state of emergency.
The divers they have not been able to stop the leak from the ship, approx hundred meterswhile the Tobago Disaster Management Agency (TEMA) assures that none have been detected sign of life in the mysterious ship Gulfstream, which caused the oil spill.
They are polluted 15 kilometers off the coast of Tobago, one of the two islands of the oil-producing country of 1.4 million inhabitants, near Venezuela.
Sea locks were developed for about 15 km to allow ships to arrive as far as the port of Scarborough, the capital of Tobago.
Since Thursday, hundreds of volunteers have mobilized to contain the spread of the thick oil spill, but the effort is insufficient.
The carnival is threatened
In addition to affecting the local ecosystem, the oil spill also threatens vital revenue from the tourism.
Trinidad and Tobago is preparing to welcome thousands of tourists during the Carnival season. But many tourist complexes and hotels in Tobago are affected by the oil spill.
The government appealed for more to mobilize and join the volunteers. The authorities also asked tourists not to approach the zones affected by the contamination.
The ghost ship
The Gulfstream, the ship that caused the disaster, remains a mystery: it is not clear what flag it was sailing under, nor were there any calls for help on the day it went down.
“We have not been able to identify the ship by name (…) nor by registration number,” said Farley Augustine, the head of authorities in Tobago, during a press conference.
“We don’t know who this ship belongs to. We have no idea where it was coming from or what it was carrying,” Mr Rowley insisted, not ruling out that the vessel was involved in smuggling.
“We don’t even know if it’s a lorry, a tanker or a barge, as only its keel is visible and the evidence that would allow it to be identified is underwater, out of reach at the moment,” Mr Rowley added.
Source: Skai
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