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Oil spill teams respond to N.Z. vessel

WELLINGTON, New Zealand, Jan. 10 (UPI) -- The New Zealand government said Tuesday it reactivated a volunteer oil response team after the cargo ship Rena started to sink during high seas.

As much as 2,000 barrels of oil leaked from the Rena after it struck a reef in the Bay of Plenty in October. Maritime New Zealand, the agency in charge of responding to the disaster, said by December salvage teams stopped pumping operations from a submerged starboard fuel tank after their pumps started extracting seawater instead of oil from the ship.

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MNZ reported rough seas were causing part of the ship to sink. As much as 75 percent of the ship is underwater, including the bridge.

"A small amount of oil and debris, and two containers were discharged from the stern section as it submerged," the agency said in a statement.

MNZ authorities said an oil spill response team deployed containment boom in anticipation of oil reaching the shore. A volunteer response team, meanwhile, was reactivated to clean up beaches that may become contaminated.

The agency said oil from Rena could reach New Zealand shores sometime Wednesday. None of the cargo containers that authorities haven't yet recovered contains hazardous materials.

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MNZ said high seas meant they couldn't assess the situation of the submerged section. The amount of oil spilled from Rena during the last 24 hours was "very small," the agency added.

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