Civil protection intervened throughout the morning of Monday to evacuate the fuel lost by an oil tanker in the Albert canal near Beringen (Limburg). As of Sunday evening, it was estimated that 30,000 liters of fuel had flowed into the canal but it seems that it was ultimately “that“of 10,000 liters.
On Sunday, an incident occurred around 6:00 p.m. when fuel pumped into a gas station from an oil tanker overflowed. While the pump was activated, the passage of another high-speed boat caused a wave, which detached the connection to the gas station, spilling the fuel into the waters.
The firefighters were helped by civil protection to evacuate the fuel from the canal. The tanker’s boatman quickly sounded the alarm and tried to contain the pollution.
“The substance around the ship has been cleaned but a high concentration of fuel is still observed in Kolenhaven (port on the Albert canal, editor’s note). Civil protection will also suck up as much fuel as possible.“, explains the mayor of Beringen Thomas Vints. The mayor is monitoring the situation closely with the environmental protection services, firefighters and civil protection. The pollution can still cause odor nuisance but there is no danger for residents.