Cleaning up operations were under way off the Durban harbour on Thursday after an offshore oil spill dumped at least five tons of crude into the water and onto nearby beaches.
Sapref, the Durban oil refinery, said the spill happened about two-and-a-half kilometres out to sea at a buoy mooring where tankers usually discharged crude oil into a pipeline transporting it to shore.
Spokesperson Phumi Nhlapo said they had asked a marine biologist from the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research to take samples in the area. She said monitoring of the area between the Umlazi canal and the Cuttings beach below Buldana Drive was continuing.
Meanwhile, the South Durban Community Environmental Alliance said they believed ”much more” than five tons of crude oil leaked into the ocean.
”We were there this morning and lots of oil was still washing ashore, they’re just cleaning the tip of the iceberg” said Steven van Wyk.
Van Wyk added that he was worried that fishermen from the surrounding communities of Isipingo, Merbank and Wentworth would lose their source of income.
”Some fishermen told us the fish they caught was covered in oil and they had to throw it back in the water because people wouldn’t buy it” he said.
According to Sapref there was no indication that marine life had been affected.
Sapref is a joint venture between energy multinationals Shell SA Energy and BP Southern Africa. – Sapa