National antipollution exercises in Malta and Egypt – Nov 01, 2010

REMPEC participated in two national anti-pollution exercises simulating an oil spill. The MALTEX 2010 exercise was held in Malta on 18th and 19th October, simulating a collision between a tanker and a cargo ship leading to a spill of 10 tons of fuel. The second exercise, called Ra Atum 7, which took place in Egypt on 1st and 2nd November, involved a simulated collision between two tankers, resulting in pollution of 10,000 tonnes of light oil.

The Maltese and Egyptian contacted REMPEC in the framework of these exercises. The Centre provided expert advice on best response techniques and on the use of dispersants. The advice came from officers of the Centre as well as from experts of Cedre, mobilized in the framework of the Mediterranean Assistance Unit (MAU). The emergency dispatch on site of an expert was also simulated. The Centre also provided meteo-oceanographic data and oil spill drifting predictions, thanks to the activation of ERO (Emergency Response Office), established in the framework of the partnership with MOON (Mediterranean Operational Oceanography Network).