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Fresh traces of slick on beach

DUBAI — The Dubai Municipality, in coordination with the Frontiers and Coast Guard Department, is investigating what caused the oil slick along the Umm Suqeim stretch of the Jumeirah Open Beach on Saturday.

Though the origin of the oil slick is still not clear, senior officials of the civic body said the affected shores had been completely cleaned up and more than 600 bags full of tar balls had been collected in the process. However, fresh traces of slick were still there on the beach until yesterday morning.

Municipality officials said no fresh spillage was spotted and the cleaning work was in progress.

Hamdan Al Shair, Director of the Environment Department in the Dubai Municipality, said, "Samples of the polluted water have been sent to the Dubai Central Laboratory for tests. Strict action will be taken against those responsible for this spillage in accordance with the federal and local laws."

"A fine amounting to at least Dh150,000 will be levied against the offender. He will also be held responsible for any kind of damage the spillage has cost, including the material costs to clear and remove the damage," he added, citing provisions of the law.

Meanwhile, the hotels, which had been affected by the oil slick, said the private beaches had not been closed. An official from the Jumeirah Group emphasised that the Jumeirah Beach Hotel remained open yesterday after an oil slick was spotted.

"Our guests have not been restricted from going to the beaches. The amount of tar found on the northern portion of the Jumeirah beach was negligible. Our staff is closely monitoring the situation," the spokesperson said.

The slick was spotted around 2pm and a team of the Dubai Municipality rushed to the spot to clean up the area.

• UAE