Brazil's Petrobras cleans up oil spill after fire
Date: 17-Sep-02
Country: BRAZIL
Petrobras said a fire broke out late on Saturday night at the pier of a port terminal in Angra dos Reis, a haven for yacht owners about 90 miles (145 kms) south of Rio de Janeiro. The fire began during maintenance work but its cause is as yet unknown.
Transpetro, Petrobras' oil transportation arm, mobilized some 450 men and 50 boats once the fire started to limit the damages, Petobras said in a statement. The fire was put out in the early hours of Sunday.
Despite its growing stature in the global oil industry, Petrobras has been fined by authorities over the past year for a series of embarrassing oil spills and has suffered numerous accidents. In July, two workers were killed in a Petrobras refinery blast.
Petrobras said no on was injured in the fire at Angra. The pier at the Almirante Maximiniano da Fonseca terminal was not operating at the time and no ships were moored.
"The material damages are being evaluated and the causes of the fire investigated," Petrobras said in a statement.
Petrobras said "a volume" of oil, without specifying how much, leaked into the sea and clean-up teams continued working in the area. Petrobras said it hoped to complete its clean-up work by the end of Monday.
Transpetro suspended loading and unloading operations at the terminal until it could be repaired and ships would be diverted to other terminals. About 23 ships per month dock at the terminal, the statement said.