Rescue work in North-West Estonia is focused on collecting dead and oiled birds. Oil collection has been suspended due to difficult weather conditions.
More than 200 dead birds were collected from the polluted area of North-West Estonia yesterday and 700 on Friday. In total, almost 2,500 dead birds have been collected from the polluted area. By now, the state and the Estonian Fund for Nature have taken more than 700 living birds indoors, including 95 yesterday. Cleaning and caring for birds is carried out in cooperation with international experts. The representatives of the International Fund for Animal Welfare, who have cared for oiled birds and animals all over the world, are working at the accident site. The employees of the Environmental Inspectorate, the National Nature Conservation Centre, the Estonian Rescue Board and the Estonian Fund for Nature are working on site. During the past days, 100 to 150 volunteers have also participated in rescue work. The Ministry of the Environment intends to initiate an additional investigation to obtain more accurate information on the amount of oil, since the people working on site claim that there is still a significant quantity of oil in water. On Monday, the committee of experts will meet to plan further steps in removing the pollution. In addition, the committee will have to deal with the costs of the natural catastrophe.
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