Crews Work to Get Oil Spill Under Control
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Crews were racing against the weather to drain a ship beached off the coast of Gisborne, a popular swimming and surfing spot.
More than 100 workers cleaned large pools of oil already washed ashore from the grounded vessel.
The Japanese-owned log ship caught on a sandbar Wednesday night and began leaking its 198 tons of oil.
About 75 birds have been found with slight oiling but only one has been treated.
“This has the potential to be disastrous for wildlife of this region,” said Department of Conservation marine officer Debbie Freeman.
Crews hope to get the oil off the ship before Wednesday, when the weather is forecast to worsen.
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