Oil spill by <i>Sea Diamond</i> in Greece`s Aegean Sea
The oil spill caused by the Greek cruise ship, Sea Diamond, sinking in the Aegean Sea off the Santorini island, Greece, is still dirtying the island's coastline. Though the incident occurred in the first week of April, the Greek government is yet to initiate a mop up operation.
The 22,000-tonne ship was carrying around 450 tonnes of fuel, of which it is believed to have emptied 20 tonnes Local authorities fear the remaining 430 tonnes can start leaking any moment due to tidal action. They demand the government speed up mopping up operations. A media statement issued by the merchant marine ministry says the process will take another two months to be complete. Santorini island is a famous tourist destination in Greece. The sinking of the Sea Diamond, weeks ahead of the tourist season, is expected to hit the island's tourism industry hard.
Meanwhile, authorities have recovered the data recorder (black box) of the ship.The ministry expects that it will shed light on the cause of the ship's sinking, especially why the ship struck a clearly marked submerged reef.