Plane with dispersant chemicals heads to oil slick off Australia

The crew of 69 people were evacuated from the rig early Friday when the leak of oil and gas was noticed. No-one was injured.

On Saturday, a slick about 30 metres wide stretched some eight nautical miles on the ocean surface about 250 kilometres north-west of the coast of the Kimberley region.

Rig operator PTTEP Australasia said in a statement Saturday it was still trying to find ways to bring the leak under control.

The Australian Maritime Safety Authority said a C-130 military-style cargo plane was en route to the area carrying chemicals it would drop on the slick to disperse it.

Follow Emirates 24|7 on Google News.