WELLINGTON, New Zealand, Oct. 24 (UPI) -- Almost 30 percent of the oil on the stranded cargo vessel Rena has been removed, though getting the rest off will be difficult, responders said.
A large crack is apparent on the starboard side of the cargo vessel, which is stuck on a reef off the coast of New Zealand. Clean-up crews on area beaches have removed close to 1,000 tons of solid waste after as much as 2,000 barrels of oil leaked from the ship stuck in the Bay of Plenty.
Maritime New Zealand, the agency responding to the disaster, said salvage crews have been able to get around 480 tons of oil off the ship, about one-third of the volume originally on board.
Bruce Anderson, a salvage unit manager, said teams were looking at how to get the rest of the fuel out of Rena's tanks.
"It's is not a simple task," he said in a statement. "It's a difficult job just getting in there."
Between 5-10 tons of oil spilled during the weekend from Rena because of tidal movement and reduced buoyancy brought on by oil removal.
Dive teams were on scene examining the integrity of some of the submerged fuel tanks.
