The Spanish authorities are working in overdrive to try to contain the thick fuel oil which is coming in on the waves to Gran Canaria.
So far, more than 120 kg has been scraped off several beaches on the tourist island, but the leak continues.
Oleg Naydenov, a Russian fishing trawler, had more than 1,400 tonnes of fuel oil on boat when it caught fire and then sank on 14 April. It was about 15 nautical miles south of Gran Canaria.
Every hour between 5 and 10 litres of fuel are leaking into the sea.
Initially, oil slicks were being spotted in the sea, but on Wednesday clumps of oil were found on several beaches.
Greenpeace has warned that the situation could worsen. It also released photos of several birds and turtles covered in oil from the tanker as well as that of a bottlenose dolphin.
Others appeared more optimistic about the problem. Island council leader José Miguel Bravo de Laguna said: “While it’s a serious issue, we have to be careful not to exaggerate things, because we’re in an area that survives, in good part, on tourism and what’s arriving on our beaches at the moment isn’t that alarming.”
So far there are no official bans on access or fishing on Gran Canaria’s southern beaches.
On Thursday, Spain’s public works minister, Ana Pastor Julián, explained that a robot has detected three leaks in the hull of the ship. Authorities are looking into having the leaks sealed as soon as possible. The government, she said, was also currently weighing the technical possibilities of removing the fuel from the ship.
