Kiel Canal remains closed over Christmas

Created: 2022-12-24 03:31

The anti-pollution ship Scharhörn drives across the water to pick up the oil.

© Jonas Walzberg/dpa/archive image

When will ships be able to travel freely again on the Kiel Canal?

The shipping companies hope for this signal.

The oil fight in Brunsbüttel continues - at least over the Christmas holidays.

Brunsbüttel - After large quantities of oil spilled from a pipeline, the Kiel Canal will remain closed to shipping at least for the Christmas period.

The emergency command announced on Friday evening that it was still not possible to say with certainty when the release can take place.

The oil spill response measures on the artificial waterway in Schleswig-Holstein would continue.

The Waterways and Shipping Authority for the Kiel Canal assumes that the blocking of the canal will be lifted on Wednesday at the earliest.

The competent authorities are in close coordination, according to the emergency command.

The Waterways and Shipping Office for the Kiel Canal is responsible for releasing the canal.

Around 150 emergency services on the shore and on the water made good progress on Friday.

"The oil fight is going well," said the spokesman for the emergency command.

The data from an aircraft equipped with sensors provided new results.

"The oil film on the canal is getting thinner." On the bank side, however, there are still a few hotspots.

According to the current status, a two-digit number of animals are affected by the oil pollution.

Since the gates of the locks in Brunsbüttel are not hermetically sealed, there is a risk that oil will get into the Elbe from the Kiel Canal.

The emergency services tried to prevent this as far as possible using oil barriers.

The head of the emergency command, Robby Renner, had pointed out on Thursday evening that the duration of the oil fight depends, among other things, on the weather conditions.

Three special ships were also in action on Friday.

The multi-purpose ship "Neuwerk" was to be withdrawn over the course of Saturday, but replaced by an oil-fighting unit, which was expected in Brunsbüttel that night.

The waterway was closed on Wednesday after large amounts of oil spilled due to a leak in a pipeline in the port of Brunsbüttel.

It was initially unclear why the leak in the pipeline had occurred.

The water police are investigating the leak.

Due to the ongoing proceedings, no further information on the circumstances and causes could be given at the moment, the authority said on Friday.

There had been water pollution in the lock area since December 16th.

The canal between Kiel on the Baltic Sea and Brunsbüttel (Dithmarschen district) at the mouth of the Elbe in the North Sea is the world's busiest artificial sea waterway.

dpa