By Tharumalee Silva
The pumping of oil out of the ship which washed ashore in Rumassala last week due to adverse weather has begun, but concerns remained over the damage it could cause to the corals in the surrounding waters.
The vessel was said to have been transporting cement when it got stuck in Galle.
The pumping of oil out of the ship which washed ashore in Rumassala last week due to adverse weather has begun, but concerns remained over the damage it could cause to the corals in the surrounding waters.
The vessel was said to have been transporting cement when it got stuck in Galle.
The Deputy General Manager of the Marine Environment Protection Authority said there was no oil spill and the pumping of oil out of the ship had commenced on Friday evening.
“There is no oil spill as of yet and the initial stages of pumping the oil out of the ship is in progress now,” he said.
Navy Media Spokesperson Lieutenant Commander Isuru Sooriyabandara said that initial investigations are being carried out on the incident involving the ship by respective authorities and the private organisation the ship belongs to.
“The issue is that the ship is touching the bottom and has posed great danger to the shallow water corals of the Rumassala beach. However, we are trying to mitigate the situation at the moment. The Navy has mostly done their duty in ensuring that no further harm is posed to the Buono Vista coral reef,” stated Sooriyabandara.