Russia declared a federal state of emergency on a dark tide in the Black Sea, which intervened after an oil tanker “split in two” a ferocious winter storm.
The head of Russia’s Emergencies Ministry, Alexander Kurenkov, made the ministry’s telegram channel on Wednesday after an assembly on security, the ministry’s telegram channel reported on Thursday.
Newsweek has reached out to Russia’s Ministry of Transport via email for comment.
The oil spill took place in the Kerch Strait, which separates Russia from Crimea. The region illegally annexed through Moscow in 2014 and has served as a logistics hub for its forces since President Vladimir Putin introduced a full-scale invasion of the country in February 2022.
The Russian oil tanker Volgoneft 212, which had been carrying more than 4,000 tons of the fuel, broke open off the coast of Crimea on December 15.
Video footage showed the ship half submerged as it sank in the rough waves. The Russian government introduced an aircraft rescue project to save the crew on board, but one user was killed on Send Nawnk.
Two other ships got into difficulty alongside the Volgoneft 212 as it broke apart in the storm. A second vessel, the Volgoneft 239 sustained damage, while a third tanker called the Volgoneft 109 remained intact, according to Russian media. both ships’ crews were rescued.
The 3 ships were over 50 years old, to European ports of departure trade.
According to reports, volunteers who help shield the oil spill on the Russian Black Sea coast asked Putin to supply more help.
Krasnodar Gov. Krai Veniamin Kondratyev said he had called for a federal state of emergency to be declared because his region “had enough resources for this work. “
Although a state of emergency has already been declared in two municipalities in Krasnodar Krai, a territory in southwestern Russia, the new state of emergency will allow for a federal response, bringing more resources and funds.
Head of the Russian Emergencies Ministry Alexander Kurenkov said on Thursday: “Taking into account the current situation and the reports we have heard, I propose classifying the emergency situation caused by the tanker wreck in the Kerch Strait as a federal emergency and establishing a federal level of response.”
Krasnodar Krai Governor Veniamin Kondratyev said: “We have declared a regional emergency regime since December 25, and allocated 1.2 billion rubles [just over $11 million] from the reserve fund. We have systematically approached beach cleanup, but emissions continue. Every day, volunteers collect oil products, come in the morning—and everything starts all over again.
“Therefore, it is vital to prevent the challenge at sea, then there will be much less paint on the shore. It will be done with the help of regional forces. Another vital factor is the disposal. Thousands of tons of fuel oil with sand, in areas of temporary garages.
“Taking into account possible new emissions, the forces of specialized companies in the region, which process the soil and are already working at the limit of their capabilities, will not be enough. I am grateful to Alexander Vyacheslavovich Kurenkov for the decision to introduce a federal emergency regime.”
Kurenkov said on Thursday that only 15% of the paintings related to pollutants on the Black Sea coast had been completed.
Now that the federal state of emergency has been declared, the Russian state budget will be faithful to the cleanup efforts and response.
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Jordan King is a Newsweek journalist founded in London, UK. She focuses on human interest stories in Africa and the Middle East. She has extensively covered the civil war in the Democratic Republic of Congo, police brutality and poverty in South Africa, and gender-based violence around the world. Jordan joined Newsweek in 2024 after leaving the evening standard and has worked at Metro. co. uk in the past. She is a graduate of Kingston University and has also worked in documentaries. You can tap Jordan via email at J. King@newsweek. com. Languages: English.