PORT-OF-SPAIN, Trinidad and Tobago — Last week, a mysterious vessel was discovered overturned off the coast of Tobago, an island part of the Caribbean nation of Trinidad and Tobago. No crew members were found, only a dark, viscous substance seeping from the vessel.
The sticky material has now begun to contaminate the beaches, posing a threat to the country’s crucial tourism industry. On Wednesday, the government made some progress in solving the mystery. It was revealed that the vessel reported on Feb. 7 was an overturned barge being towed from Panama in Central America to Guyana in South America by the tugboat Solo Creed. However, Guyanese authorities confirmed that the barge never reached Guyana.
Initially, the oil was spotted approximately four miles north of the barge near the Tobagonian town of Scarborough. However, recent satellite imagery from the Tobago Emergency Management Agency shows that the contamination has spread much farther out, approximately 48 miles west of the island.
Despite ongoing cleanup efforts, the exact amount of oil spilled and the quantity remaining in the mostly submerged barge remain uncertain. The cause of the overturning is still unknown.
The appearance of the vessel has sparked interest and speculation about its identity and origin. Some have suggested that it might be the Gulfstream, a 561-foot oil products tanker built by South Korea’s Hanjin Heavy Industries in 1975. However, speculation about its identity and origin continues, with divers struggling to inspect the vessel due to its movement and the clouding of the water.
Trinidad and Tobago has a history of dealing with spills, as it is the largest oil producer in the Caribbean, with its petroleum and petrochemicals industry accounting for more than a third of its gross domestic product, according to the World Bank. Prime Minister Keith Rowley has declared a national emergency and mobilized workers to contain the spill, clean the beaches, and protect wildlife.
As cleanup efforts continue, it has become clear that the vessel overturned in a sparsely populated area. Prime Minister Rowley expressed relief that the spill did not reach the more populous areas in the north or west of Tobago, where it could have caused greater damage to the environment and the economy.
The Trinidad and Tobago Ministry of National Security, the Tobago Emergency Management Agency, and Fishermen and Friends of the Sea have provided valuable insights and information regarding the incident.
The government’s response to the spill, along with the ongoing investigation into its cause and origin, underscores the potentially devastating impact of such environmental disasters on both the ecological and economic aspects of a country.