China Oil Spill Updates

Taipei, Taiwan (GaeaTimes.com) China had a huge explosion in an oil pipeline that resulted in oil spill. It is reported that oil has spread over 165 square miles or 430 square kilometers of water after five days of explosion.

The pipeline explosion at a busy northeastern port sparked a massive fire five days ago. It took more than 15 hours to contain. The cause of the blast is still unclear. The pipe belonged to China National Petroleum Corp. It is the biggest oil and gas producer in Asia by volume.

The nearby beaches are closed as oil started reaching their shores.

The oil spill will pose a severe threat to marine animals, and water quality, and the sea birds.

Said Huang Yong, deputy bureau chief for Dalian, China Maritime Safety Administration.

Hundreds of boats have been deployed to help the cleanup. 40 special oil skimming vessels and oil eating bacteria has also been put to use. According to some reports, the response after the oil spill has been much quicker than the reaction of BP in the United States. The China oil spill is also a fraction of the BP Oil Spill in the Gulf of Mexico. It has a 2,700 square miles of visible surface slick compared to 165 sq miles of China Oil Spill so far.

One person is reported to have been killed in the oil spill cleanup effort. Zhang Liang, a 25 year old firefighter, drowned Tuesday as a wave threw him from a vessel and pushed him out to the sea. Reports say that another man fell but he was rescued.