Heavy fuel oil from Russian tankers is approaching another Ukrainian city.

Two Russian tankers, 'Volgoneft-212' and 'Volgoneft-239', spilled heavy fuel oil into the Sea of Azov, polluting a 15 km stretch of coastline. This information was released by the press service of the Mariupol City Council.

The press service also reported that the cleanup of the heavy fuel oil began in mid-January and is still ongoing.

Earlier, there were reports of a concentrated patch of oil products covering an area of 300 km² in the Sea of Azov. The occupiers have already removed about 18 tons of heavy fuel oil, but it has been noticed again, especially in Mariupol.

On December 15, as a result of the tankers 'Volgoneft-212' and 'Volgoneft-239' accident in the Kerch Strait, a large amount of heavy fuel oil penetrated into the sea and continues to spread in the Black Sea. Over 50 km of coastline has been affected, including the southern coast of Crimea, the Kerch Strait, the Black Sea, and the RF coastline near Anapa.

Specialists from the State Environmental Inspection conducted research on the Black Sea coast in the Odesa region and discovered pollution resembling heavy fuel oil. Samples of water and soil were taken from the contaminated area for further laboratory research.