Oil Spill Damages Israel Desert Nature Reserve
Image by getty images
An oil spill from a pipeline into a desert nature reserve near Eilat is being called one of Israel’s worst environmental disasters.
The Eilat –Ashkelon pipeline ruptured Wednesday night next to the Evrona reserve, on the border with Jordan. The break occurred during maintenance work on the pipeline that runs between the Mediterranean and Red seas, according to reports citing a preliminary investigation.
More than 80 people were treated for respiratory problems due to the spill, mostly over the border in Jordan. Three Israelis were hospitalized for inhaling toxic fumes.
The amount of crude oil spilled is estimated at thousands of gallons, according to the Environment Protection Ministry.
“Rehabilitation will take months, if not years,” Guy Samet, the director of the southern region for the Environmental Protection Ministry, told Israel Radio. “This is one of the State of Israel’s most serious pollution events. We are still having trouble gauging the full extent of the contamination.”
Highway 90, the main road into the resort town of Eilat, was closed in both directions for about 30 miles as emergency teams worked to staunch the flow of oil.
I hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, I’d like to ask you to please support the Forward’s award-winning journalism this Passover.
In this age of misinformation, our work is needed like never before. We report on the news that matters most to American Jews, driven by truth, not ideology.
At a time when newsrooms are closing or cutting back, the Forward has removed its paywall. That means for the first time in our 126-year history, Forward journalism is free to everyone, everywhere. With an ongoing war, rising antisemitism, and a flood of disinformation that may affect the upcoming election, we believe that free and open access to Jewish journalism is imperative.
Readers like you make it all possible. Right now, we’re in the middle of our Passover Pledge Drive and we need 500 people to step up and make a gift to sustain our trustworthy, independent journalism.
Make a gift of any size and become a Forward member today. You’ll support our mission to tell the American Jewish story fully and fairly.
— Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Publisher and CEO
Join our mission to tell the Jewish story fully and fairly.
Our Goal: 500 gifts during our Passover Pledge Drive!
