Amount Of Oil Left Unknown

Press, Volume CVI, Issue 31332, 31 March 1967, Page 11

Amount Of Oil Left Unknown

(N.Z.P.A.-Reuter—Copyright)

PENZANCE (England), March3o.

British planes warmed up at dawn today for a third onslaught against the stubborn hulk of the wrecked tanker Torrey Canyon after fires started by high explosives and napalm bombs fizzled out.

The jet fighter-bombers will swoop again on the blistered remains of the 61,000-ton tanker —still clinging defiantly to notorious Seven Stones reef near Penzance —hoping to burn out the last of its crude oil cargo.

Fires started by about 10 hours of., .raids in the last two days went out last night and experts started arguing over how much of the 120,000-ton cargo is left to threaten Britain’s beaches.

Some said the bombs could have destroyed all 40,000 tons of oil believed to be still in the vessel before the jets moved in on Tuesday.

But others said the raids had been failures with most of the smoke and flames coming from bombs and kerosene keeping the fire going rather than the treacly oil. The Government Fire Research director, Mr Dennis Lawson said after inspecting patches of floating oil last night that neither napalm nor aero fuels would set it alight now. “All we should do is let the sea dry out of this on the beaches and then attempt to fire it” he said. The results of Mr Lawson’s tests were rushed to an emergency committee of scientists, headed by the chief Government scientist, Sir Solly Zuckerman, which is advising on the huge oil clearing. Wreckage Hazard Ships already warned to keep away from the reef off the south-west tip of England today faced a new hazard of parts of wreckage from the tanker floating out to sea after being blasted loose by bombs.

Navy workers believe they are winning their battle to disperse the vast blanket of

oil already drifting uncontrollably off the coast and blackening favourite holiday beaches.

About 50 vessels are spraying detergent on the oil sea while thousands of soldiers, helped by housewives, local workers and children, battle to clear the sands. Latest reports said the Navy had reclassified many parts of the oil slick from “thick” to “thin” and offshore winds were moving it out to sea. Explosion Fear The British Prime Minister, Mr Wilson, said the biggest danger had been of explosion. Many of the salvage ideas put forward failed to allow for the effects of friction, heat, or sparks in the atmosphere overcharged with explosive gases. That was why some of the methods were not possible. Mr Wilson was asked about the decision to go ahead and bomb the tanker. He said: “the decision was taken by the emergency committee in London. They told me about it Immediately afterwards and I agreed.”