DoomsdaysCW<p>Crippled British bulk carrier remains abandoned in Red Sea as pollution fears mount</p><p>By Paul Godfrey, UPI <br>Published Feb 29, 2024</p><p>"British bulk carrier badly damaged in a missile strike by Houthi rebels more than a week ago remains at anchor but abandoned in the Red Sea waiting to be towed to a port as fears grow of a <a href="https://kolektiva.social/tags/pollution" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#<span>pollution</span></a> catastrophe.</p><p>"The Feb. 18 strike on the <a href="https://kolektiva.social/tags/Rubymar" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#<span>Rubymar</span></a>, which is awaiting towing to the Saudi Arabian Port of Jeddah after the nearby ports of Djibouti and Aden refused to accept it, caused an 18-mile <a href="https://kolektiva.social/tags/OilSlick" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#<span>OilSlick</span></a> with concern now mounting over its cargo of fertilizer, according to U.S. Central Command.</p><p>"The M/V Rubymar was transporting over 41,000 tons of <a href="https://kolektiva.social/tags/fertilizer" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#<span>fertilizer</span></a> when it was attacked, which could spill into the Red Sea and worsen this <a href="https://kolektiva.social/tags/EnvironmentalDisaster" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#<span>EnvironmentalDisaster</span></a>," CENTCOM said.</p><p>"The crew abandoned ship when it began taking on water after being targeted by two missiles, one of which badly damaged the engine room, as it was transiting the 20-mile-wide Bab al-Mandab Strait 35 miles south of the Yemeni port city of Al Mukha.</p><p>"Athens, Greece-headquartered shipping broker <a href="https://kolektiva.social/tags/BlueFleetGroup" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#<span>BlueFleetGroup</span></a> told CNBC that the semi-submerged vessel was awaiting assistance from the U.S. Navy to tow it to Jeddah but had no information about the oil spillage.</p><p>"The International Maritime Organization said it was closely monitoring the situation.</p><p>"'Oil being a highly toxic substance means that any oil spill has adverse impacts on the surrounding environment and communities, the degree of which depends on several factors such as the quantity released and the sea current,' said <a href="https://kolektiva.social/tags/Greenpeace" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#<span>Greenpeace</span></a> spokesman <a href="https://kolektiva.social/tags/JulienJreissati" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#<span>JulienJreissati</span></a>.</p><p>"'In the case of Rubymar, beyond the oil leakage coming from the engine room, another risk originates from its potential fertilizer cargo.'"</p><p><a href="https://www.accuweather.com/en/climate/crippled-british-bulk-carrier-remains-abandoned-in-red-sea-as-pollution-fears-mount/1626718" rel="nofollow noopener" translate="no" target="_blank"><span class="invisible">https://www.</span><span class="ellipsis">accuweather.com/en/climate/cri</span><span class="invisible">ppled-british-bulk-carrier-remains-abandoned-in-red-sea-as-pollution-fears-mount/1626718</span></a></p><p><a href="https://kolektiva.social/tags/ElectricContainerShips" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#<span>ElectricContainerShips</span></a> <a href="https://kolektiva.social/tags/ElectricCargoShips" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#<span>ElectricCargoShips</span></a> <a href="https://kolektiva.social/tags/SourceLocally" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#<span>SourceLocally</span></a> <a href="https://kolektiva.social/tags/WaterIsLife" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#<span>WaterIsLife</span></a> <a href="https://kolektiva.social/tags/Pollution" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#<span>Pollution</span></a> <a href="https://kolektiva.social/tags/NoWar" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#<span>NoWar</span></a> <a href="https://kolektiva.social/tags/OrganicFarming" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#<span>OrganicFarming</span></a> <a href="https://kolektiva.social/tags/Degrowth" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#<span>Degrowth</span></a></p>