Cleanup crews have finished removing fuel oil residues from the seabed near the Russian resort town of Anapa, nearly a year after one of the Black Sea’s worst oil spills, regional officials said Friday.
The southern Krasnodar region’s emergency headquarters said divers cleared 19 sites along a 14-kilometer (8.7 miles) stretch of coast running north from Anapa toward the Taman Peninsula, where mainland Russia connects to annexed Crimea.
Specialists carried out more than 21,500 dives, collecting nearly 22,500 bags of oil-soaked debris weighing more than 2,000 metric tons, according to the authorities. The oil was scooped from the seabed with shovels and suction devices to prevent it from drifting ashore.
The December 2024 spill, caused by the sinking of two tankers that released more than 4,000 tons of heavy fuel oil, forced sweeping emergency measures across southern Russia and Crimea. A federal-level emergency remains in effect over the spill, and cleanup efforts continue in other areas.
A swimming ban is also still in place across the region’s coastline, and officials warn that oil continues to seep from the wrecks, complicating efforts to contain the damage. At least 13 smaller spills have been reported in the Black Sea since the initial disaster.
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