An offshore oil spill has caused a 'national emergency,' Trinidad and Tobago prime minister says
ABC News
Trinidad and Tobago’s prime minister says a large oil spill near the twin-island nation in the eastern Caribbean has caused a “national emergency.”
SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico -- Trinidad and Tobago’s prime minister said a large oil spill near the twin-island nation in the eastern Caribbean has caused a “national emergency” as crews struggled to contain the oil already coating numerous beaches on Tobago’s southwest coast.
The government has yet to identify the owner of the vessel that overturned near Tobago last week, Prime Minister Keith Rowley said Sunday.
It was not immediately clear how much oil had spilled and how much remained in the largely submerged vessel. It was not clear what caused the vessel to overturn.
Divers have not been able to contain the leak and are trying to determine how to remove the remaining oil, said Farley Augustine, chief secretary of Tobago’s House of Assembly, who toured the area with the prime minister.
Tobago is a popular tourist destination. Officials worried about the spill’s impact. There was no immediate comment from environmental watchdogs.
