Cargo ship spills up to 900 litres of oil in national park

Up to 900 litres of oil has spilled from a cargo ship into Lake Haukivesi in Rantasalmi, partly within Linnansaari National Park, Yle reports. Several rescue units from two regions are responding to the spill.

The South Savo Rescue Department said the oil leaked from a tank on the deck of a vessel approximately 84 metres long. It described the amount as relatively significant.

The leak lasted about 10 minutes. The ship’s crew stopped it and alerted the rescue department shortly after 5pm.

Rescue units have located oil in several places and are removing it from the lake using, among other equipment, containment booms.

The exact location is in Kuokanselkä, near the islands of Hoikkakiukas and Karhosaari. The operation involves five rescue boats from South Savo and three or four from North Savo.

According to MarineTraffic, a cargo ship travelled through the area on Tuesday after departing from Lappeenranta, stopping in Savonlinna and continuing to the port of Varkaus.

The response is expected to continue for several hours, but the rescue department will have to stop the oil recovery operation when darkness falls.