Emergency declared on Indonesia oil spill

JAKARTA, April 3, 2018 – The city of Balikpapan declared a state of emergency on Monday after at least four died over the weekend in an oil spill and fire offshore Borneo island.

At least two people died on Saturday when workers attempted to clean the spill by setting it on fire, international media reported.

The Semayang Port Authority is currently working with Chevron Indonesia and Pertamina to clean up the spill, which has been contained by booms and sprayed with chemicals to facilitate recovery.

“Our focus now is to mitigate the impact of the oil spill. Since Saturday, our team as well as Pertamina and the Balikpapan Environment and Sanitation Agency have worked together to minimise the impact,” Environment and Forestry Ministry law enforcement director general Rasio Ridho Sani told the Straits Times. “Our team in the field is investigating it thoroughly. We will soon find out how big the impact is on the environment and who will be held responsible.”

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