About 1.1 million litres of diesel have spilled into the Meghna river as a tanker namely Sagor Nandini-2 capsized en route to Chandpur from Chattogram after being collided with another ship, posing serious threat to the biodiversity and aquatic life in the river.
However, coastguards said they are removing the oil from the water using the oil extractor machine.
On a spot visit on Monday morning, this correspondent saw hundreds of fishermen of Bhola sadar and Daulatkhan collecting the spilled diesel by soaking up clothes. Besides, the air of the area is filled with the odor of oil that makes the lives of nearby people unbearable.
The master of Sagor Nandini-2 vessel, Masudur Rahman, told Prothom Alo that the oil-laden vessel set out for Chandpur from Chattogram on Saturday night. The tanker collided with another ship early on Sunday in the Meghna river in Bhola sadar area due to dense fog, resulting in a crack underneath.
That caused the vessel to sink with 1.1 million litres of diesels onboard. Later, the local fishermen rescued 12 people from the vessel using sand-laden ships, he added.
The master also said coast guards have collected around 1000 litres of oil and the remaining had drifted away.
A farmer, Hasan Kerani, of Madanpur union in Daulatkhan upazila said the water of the river has turned into gas. The oil is floating on water. The fishermen are collecting the oil using the clothes.
The village physician of Razapur, Amir Hossain Hawlader, said the fishermen of their village are cleaning up the spilled oil from the river by soaking up the clothes. But the amount of floating oil on the water decreased during the tide.
Mahbub Alam, assistant professor of environment and geography at Bhola Government College, told Prothom Alo that the biodiversity and the aquatic life of the river would be damaged severely due to the spill of the oil into the river.
It will pollute the water. There will be oxygen crisis as the oil will create a type of toxic layer on the water. Aquatic plants and animals will die after facing breathing difficulties and drinking contaminated water. The plants will be damaged, he added.
KM Shafiul Kinjal, media officer of Coast Guard's south zone, told Prothom Alo that they are removing the oil from the water body using the oil extractor, adding that this extraction, started on Sunday morning, is underway.
He said BIWTA will salvage the capsized vessel.
However, the joint director of BIWTA (Salvage) Md Abdus Samad said they don't have the capacity to recover the ship, adding their capacity is up to the weight of 250 metric tons. But the ship weighs 320 metric tons. So, the owners are trying to salvage the ship privately.