Instant Alert: An oil spill off China's coast is the world's biggest since Deepwater Horizon — and it more than tripled in size over the weekend

MANAGE SUBSCRIPTIONS   |   UNSUBSCRIBE   |   VIEW ONLINE   An oil spill off China's coast is the world's biggest since Deepwater Horizon — and it more than tripled in size over the weekend by Jeremy Berke on Jan 22, 2018, 4:47 PM Advertisement An Iranian oil tanker carrying 122,000 tons of oil sank after it collided with a Hong Kong-based tanker in the East China Sea. The collision caused an explosion that sent thousands of tons of oil spilling into the ocean. The tanker was carrying condensate, a type of ultra-light crude oil that is more difficult to clean up than heavy crude oil.  It's still not clear how big the spill will become, or what the impact on marine life will be.    An oil spill off the coast of China is now the world's largest since the Deepwater Horizon disaster, which spilled millions of gallons of crude oil into the Gulf of Mexico in 2010. A 900-foot Iranian oil tanker called the Sanchi was carrying over 122,000 tons of condensate — a refined form of ultra-light crude oil — when it collided with a Chinese cargo ship earlier this month. The crash caused the tanker to explode into flames, killing all 32 crew members aboard the ship and dumping millions of gallons of oil into the East China Sea. The tanker slipped beneath the waves on Sunday, eight days after the collision.  China's State Oceanic Administration said in a statement that the oil spill more than tripled in size over the weekend. There are currently more than three oil slicks with a surface area of approximately 332 square kilometers, or 128 miles. That's up from 101 square kilometers (38 square miles) on Wednesday. It's still not clear how large the spill will become, as much of the oil may have burned up in the initial collision.  Here's what the scene looks like:  SEE ALSO: Ag-tech startups are working on everything from apple-picking robots to machine learning — and they could radically transform how we grow our food The explosion that resulted from the crash sent flames shooting into the air, and the tanker continued burning for days afterwards. Rescue ships sailed to the area and worked to extinguish the fire on the Sanchi after the collision. The three rescue ships shown from above in this image provide a sense of the spill's scale. See the rest of the story at Business Insider   Share the latest business news with your network:    Email sent to: nguyenvu1187.love5@blogger.com   |   Manage your email preferences   |   Unsubscribe Terms of Service   |   Privacy Policy Business Insider. 150 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY 10011