Brazil targets Greek ship over coastal oil spill
November 1, 2019
A Greek-flagged ship carrying Venezuelan crude is the suspected source of an oil spill that has tarred large parts of Brazil's northeast coastline over the past two months, Brazilian investigators said on Friday.
Brazilian federal prosecutors said the vessel docked in Venezuela on July 15 and spilled oil about 700 kilometers (435 miles) off the Brazilian coast between July 28 and 29 on its way to Singapore.
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"There is strong evidence that the company, the captain and the vessel's crew failed to communicate with authorities about the oil spill/release of the crude oil in the Atlantic Ocean," prosecutors said in a statement.
They added that oceanographic and geolocation data indicated no other vessel could have spilled the oil at the time.
Federal police raided offices linked to the ship in Rio De Janiero and were seeking cooperation from international agencies, including Interpol, to further investigate the ship, its crew, and the company.
The oil spill washed ashore in nine northeast states and 94 cities, killing animals and closing hundreds of some of the country's most pristine beaches. So far more than 1,000 tons of crude have been collected from beaches.
The government's delay in dealing with the spill generated a wave of criticism of environmental management under President Jair Bolsonaro, who has already come under heat for the spread of fires throughout the Amazon region over the summer.
cw/rc (AFP, AP, EFE, Reuters)