The United Nations says an environmental disaster has been prevented with the transfer of 1.1 million barrels of oil from a deteriorating tanker moored off the coast of war-torn Yemen.
International organizations and rights groups warned for years of the potential for a spill or an explosion involved the tanker, which has not been maintained and has seawater in its engine compartment and damaged pipes.
David Gressly, the U.N. humanitarian coordinator, said Friday that during the cleaning phase a sea water wash will be applied in a bid “to extract as much liquid oil as possible.” It remains unclear how long this next phase will take. The tanker, a Japanese-made vessel built in the 1970s, was sold to the Yemeni government during the 1980s to store for export up to 3 million barrels pumped from oil fields in eastern Yemen’s Marib province. The ship is 360 meters long with 34 storage tanks.
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