Satellite photographs show a big oil slick surrounding the wrecked container ship in Sri Lanka

On the 2nd of June, the X-Press Pearl began to sink when a fire broke out on board. Chemicals were loaded into the ship.
Sri Lanka’s “worst maritime ecological calamity” has been described as a result of the occurrence.
Authorities have announced a fishing restriction in the region, citing images of dead turtles coming ashore and beaches littered with plastic pellets.

Satellite photographs now showed a massive oil slick in the sea near the wrecked vessel.

The slick is several hundred meters long, according to pictures taken on Monday. Although some part of the ship has sunk to the bottom, the photographs clearly show huge pieces of the shattered ship. The discovery of the spill comes only days after attempts to inspect the ship for leaks were hampered by strong seas and bad weather.
The International Maritime Organization is closely monitoring the disaster’s environmental consequences.  The fire destroyed the majority of the ship’s cargo, which contained 23 tonnes of nitric acid and other chemicals.

Clearing and preventing the leftover debris from reaching the adjacent beaches and animals is underway.
The navy suspects the fire was started by the chemical payload it was carrying.
An inquiry has begun. The Voyage Data Recorder (VDR), sometimes known as the “ship’s black box,” was found from the ship. It keeps track of the vessel’s operations.
The captain, chief engineer, and assistant engineer of the ship have been denied permission to leave the country.
The government has stated that it will take legal action against the ship’s owners in order to recover compensation.

(Courtesy: Sky News)