Russia forms emergency task force as Kerch Strait oil spill continues to spread

Booms on the sea around the damaged Volgoneft-239 tanker near the port of Taman (Russian Emergency Ministry Press Service via AP)

An emergency task force arrived in Russia’s southern Krasnodar region on Sunday as an oil spill in the Kerch Strait from two storm-stricken tankers continues to spread a month after it was first detected, officials said.

The task force, which includes Emergency Situations Minister Alexander Kurenkov, was set up after Russian President Vladimir Putin on Friday called on authorities to ramp up the response to the spill, calling it “one of the most serious environmental challenges we have faced in recent years”.