Mystery shipwreck washes up at beach and causes ‘disaster’ oil spill

A crashed boat has caused a huge oil spill at a beach in Tobago (Picture: Tobago House Assembly/AFP/Getty Images)

An overturned shipwreck has mysteriously washed up at a beach and caused a massive oil spill.

The vessel ran aground on the south west coast of the Caribbean island of Tobago at around 7am local time (3am UK time) on Wednesday.

Officials say the oil spill originated from the boat, called Gulfstream, around 200 metres off the coast of the Cove Eco Industrial Park.

But the origins of the damaged boat have not yet been determined.

Farley Augustine, the chief secretary of the country’s central government body Tobago House of Assembly (THA), declared the situation an ‘emergency’.

He said that divers were sent to search the ocean to see if there were ‘any souls on the vessel at the time of it being overturned’.

Pictures from the scene show huge waves of thick black oil across the shoreline where the water has completely changed colour.

The mystery shipwreck washed up on Wednesday (Picture: Tobago House Assembly/AFP/Getty Images)

The sea water has been turned black along the coastline (Picture: Tobago House Assembly/AFP/Getty Images)

Several coastal regions have been affected by the oil spill, including Kilgwyn Bay, Canoe Bay, Petit Trou Lagoon, Rockly Bay and Topaz Beach.

A clean-up exercise is ongoing, involving several organisations and agencies, in an attempt to contain and eradicate the oil spill, according to local reports.

Mr Augustine declared the oil spill as a tier 11 disaster, meaning it required national assistance.

But he said there is a high chance the island may soon require international help.

A clean up operation is ongoing (Picture: Tobago House Assembly/AFP/Getty Images)

People have been urged to stay away from the water in the area (Picture: Tobago House Assembly/AFP/Getty Images)

Several areas along the coast have been affected and the origin of the ship involved has still not been determined (Picture: Tobago House Assembly/AFP/Getty Images)

People have been urged not to fish in the area, while swimmers and jet-ski operators have also been told to steer clear.

‘Don’t go purposefully sightseeing and sailing into the area,’ Mr Augustine added. ‘It’s not an opportunity for us to go sightseeing, it’s not an opportunity for us to be macocious.

‘Please be cautious and avoid the area at all counts, you don’t need to be in that specific area immediately.’

Last month, a mysterious ghost shipwreck washed up on the US coastline centuries after it sank.

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