The Egyptian Environment Ministry on Friday fined Tanzanian oil service boat “MEHR” US$108,000 after it ran aground inside Gabal Elba national park south of the Red Sea, three nautical miles from the shore. A statement from the Ministry said that the boat destroyed an area of coral reefs, causing damage to the marine environment in the area of the accident. Immediately, the Environment Ministry decided to form a technical committee of environmental researchers in the Red Sea Governorate to examine the accident. Investigations found that boat is roughly 41 meters and caused damage to coral reefs at an area of 40 meters and width of three meters. It is also scheduled to conduct another inspection to estimate the size of the losses after the boat was refloated and towed away from the coral reefs area.

Source: Egypt Independent July 03, 2021 14:37 UTC