Environmental concerns mount as Trinidad oil spill reportedly reaches beaches hundreds of miles away

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• An offshore oil spill originating from Tobago has reached the shores of Bonaire, a Dutch Caribbean island hundreds of miles away, officials say.
• The spill is considered a serious threat to Bonaire’s ecosystem, including its mangroves, fish and corals.
• Bonaire is located more than 500 miles east of Tobago, where the spill originated.

An offshore oil spill that prompted Trinidad and Tobago to declare a national emergency earlier this month has reached the shores of the Dutch Caribbean island of Bonaire hundreds of miles away, authorities said. This is the first sign of how far the leaked oil has traveled.

Government officials said the oil poses a “serious threat” to the island and its nature including its mangroves, fish and corals. The oil washed up in areas along Bonaire’s east coast despite efforts to contain it, the government statement said Monday.

Bonaire is more than 500 miles east of Tobago, where the spill occurred.

OIL SPILL IN TRINIDAD PUSHES GOVERNMENT TO HIRE FOREIGN EXPERTS TO CONTAIN, REMOVE CAPSIZED BARGE

Officials have said they don’t how much oil has leaked or remains on board.

This satellite image provided by Maxar Technologies shows an oil spill caused by an overturned vessel off the coast of Tobago near Scarborough, Trinidad and Tobago, on Feb. 14, 2024. The spill has reached the shores of the Dutch Caribbean island of Bonaire hundreds of miles away, authorities said. (Maxar Technologies via AP)

The oil is leaking from an overturned barge that had departed from Panama and was being tugged to nearby Guyana when it began to sink, according to a preliminary investigation. The owner of the barge has not been identified.

TRINIDAD AND TOBAGO FACING ‘NATIONAL EMERGENCY’ AFTER MAJOR COASTAL OIL SPILL

Trinidad and Tobago’s Ministry of Energy said Tuesday that crews completed an investigative hydrographic survey of the wreck to allow officials to create a map of the seabed and other data around the wreck, which foreign experts are helping to remove.

Crews are working to contain and collect the oil, officials said.

Environmental activists have questioned who will pay for the cleanup costs and demanded help for fishermen whose livelihood and equipment were affected.