The ship, called FSO Safer, was employed for several years as a floating storage and unloading unit (FSO) before being abandoned because of the Yemeni Civil War. It is simply a floating, derelict oil container now. It still holds about one million barrels of oil, although no longer in service, which is four times as much as leaked from the Exxon Valdez in the infamous 1989 spill.

It is crucial for the health of local marine environments and the communities they help to remove the tanker before its current seepage can turn into a full-fledged oil spill.

The study follows on the coattails of a November 24 announcement that the Yemeni Houthis will allow the United Nations (UN) team in the near future to board, inspect, and repair the vessel.

“The time is now to prevent a potential devastation to the region’s waters and the livelihoods and health of millions of people living in half a dozen countries along the Red Sea’s coast. If a spill from the Safer is allowed to occur, the oil would spread via ocean currents to devastate a global ocean resource, as the coral reefs of the northern Red Sea and Gulf of Aqaba are projected to be among the last reef ecosystems in the world to survive the coming decades,” commented Karine Kleinhaus, MD, MPH, an Associate Professor at Stony Brook University.

Maritime Business World