Oil from sunken Iran tanker reached Japan shores: Coast Guard
Source: Reuters
ENVIRONMENT FEBRUARY 21, 2018 / 7:30 PM / UPDATED 2 HOURS AGO
Oil from sunken Iran tanker reached Japan shores: Coast Guard
Osamu Tsukimori
3 MIN READ
TOKYO (Reuters) - Oil that reached islands in southern Japan earlier this month is highly likely to have come from the sunken Iranian tanker Sanchi, the Japan Coast Guard said on Thursday.
Samples of oily matter that washed up on Feb. 8 on the shores of the Okinoerabu and Yoron islands in the Amami chain were found to be linked to the Sanchi’s sinking, the Coast Guard said.
The Sanchi sank on Jan. 14 after colliding with a freighter on Jan. 6 in the world’s worst oil tanker disaster in decades.
“Oily matter that arrived at the shores of the two islands is extremely likely to be linked to the Sanchi tanker incident, considering the similarity of the oil and the fact that there has not been any marine disaster involving oil spill in the nearby sea area,” a Coast Guard official told Reuters by phone on Thursday.
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Read more: https://www.reuters.com/article/us-china-shipping-accident/oil-from-sunken-iran-tanker-reached-japan-shores-coast-guard-idUSKCN1G601O
