Oil spill blackens Singapore's beaches

An oil spill caused by a dredger boat hitting a stationary cargo tanker has blackened part of Singapore's southern coastline, including the popular resort island of Sentosa, and sparked concerns it may threaten marine wildlife as a clean-up operation was under way yesterday.

The Netherlands-flagged dredger Vox Maxima struck the Singaporean fuel supply ship Marine Honor on Friday, damaging its cargo tank.

Singapore's Maritime and Port Authority said the oil leak had been contained and that the oil that escaped had been treated with dispersants.

But due to the tidal current, it said, the treated oil had landed along shorelines, including Sentosa, Labrador Nature Reserve, Southern Islands, Marina South Pier, and East Coast Park. Sentosa, which attracts millions of visitors annually, houses one of Singapore's two casinos, golf courses and southeast Asia's only Universal Studios theme park.

Part of the beachfront at the public park and at the nature reserve have been closed to facilitate clean-up efforts.

The Sentosa beach will remain open to the public but sea activities and swimming are prohibited.

On Sunday, workers in orange suit were seen scooping up sand in a clean-up operation at an empty beach in Sentosa.

Authorities have deployed 18 crafts for the clean-up and laid close to 1,500 meters of container booms, temporary floating barriers to trap the oil spill.

"More will be laid over the next few days to prevent further spread of oil onto the shore, and facilitate the recovery of the trapped oil off the affected shorelines and lagoons to prevent them from going back to sea," the authority said.

Local conservation group Marine Stewards reportedly said there were photos of dead fish, otters and kingfishers covered in oil slick.