A Russian oil tanker carrying thousands of tonnes of oil products broke apart in a heavy storm on Sunday, spilling oil into the Kerch Strait, and another tanker also in distress after sustaining damage , Russian officials said.
The ships were in the Kerch Strait between mainland Russia and Crimea, which Russia annexed from Ukraine in 2014, when they sent out distress signals.
Russian investigators have opened two criminal cases to look into possible safety violations after at least one person was killed when the 136-meter Volgoneft 212 tanker, with 15 people on board, split open in half with his bow sinking.
Pictures on state media showed waves washing over his deck.
The Russian-flagged vessel, built in 1969, was damaged and ran aground, officials said.
An unconfirmed video posted on Telegram showed some black water on stormy seas and a semi-submersible tanker.
The second Russian-flagged ship, the 132-meter Volgoneft 239, was moving after being damaged, the emergency ministry said. It has a crew of 14 people and was built in 1973.
Main route for export of fuel, grain
The Kerch Strait is a major route for the export of Russian grain and is also used for the export of crude oil, fuel oil and liquefied natural gas.
Ukraine in September accused Russia at an international court of flouting the law of the sea by trying to keep the Kerch Strait under its sole control, which Moscow denies. baseless accusation.
Emergency services said one person had died, but 12 other people had been evacuated from the first tanker. Eleven of those were taken to hospital, with two in serious condition, TASS news agency quoted Alexei Kuznetsov, an aide to the health minister, as saying.
The emergency ministry said it was still in contact with the other tanker and its crew after the boat ran aground 80 meters offshore near the port of Taman at the southern end of the Kerch Strait.
The tankers have a loading capacity of around 4,200 tonnes of oil products.
Official statements did not provide details on the extent of the spill or why one of the tankers sustained so much damage.
President Vladimir Putin ordered the government to set up a working group to deal with the rescue operation and mitigate the effects of the fuel spill, news agencies quoted Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov as saying, after Putin met with the ministers for emergencies and the environment.
Russia said more than 50 people and equipment, including Mi-8 helicopters and rescue boats, had been sent to the area.
Svetlana Radionova, head of Russia's natural resources watchdog Rosprirodnadzor, said experts were assessing the damage at the site of the incident.
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