Vessel that caused Penang coastline oil spill impounded

GEORGE TOWN: The vessel said to be responsible for the oil spill along the Penang coastline has been impounded to assist in investigations.

Penang Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng said the Marine Department was leading the investigation while the Department of Environment (DOE) had taken samples for tests. Checks showed that an estimated 15 tonnes of fuel was said to have spilled into the sea.

“The clean-up process was completed on Sunday,” he said after launching the Penang Convention and Exhibition Bureau Experiences Unfiltered brand campaign at Fort Cornwallis yesterday.

The oil spill was detected on Friday near the Prai Bulk Terminal, polluting a 5km coastline that stretched from Swettenham Pier to Gurney Drive.

The vessel was an oil tanker built in 2011 and registered in Port Klang.

Lim said a shoreline scan by the DOE showed that there were no traces of fuel spill in the waters of Gurney Drive, Tanjung Tokong, Tanjung Bungah, Esplanade, Baru Ferringhi and Teluk Bahang.

“The oil slick did not go down south and managed to be contained,” he said.

Lim said he was grateful to Natural Disaster Management Agency deputy chairman Datuk Seri Shahidan Kassim for leading the clean-up operation.

“He got all the relevant agencies to work together in containing the spill. The fish farms are safe but we are not sure about the marine life,” he added.

Northern Region Marine Department director Capt Abdul Samad Shaik Osman said the source of the spill has not been determined.

“We’ve checked the tanker but no leakage was found. We will also check the supply hose of the tanker to see if there was a leakage,” he said after attending the briefing for Transport Minister Datuk Seri Liow Tiong Lai at Swettenham Pier.