The Moselle is closed due to a fuel spill

On Sunday evening, at around 6:47 p.m., a large-scale leak of petroleum products, presumably diesel fuel, was reported in the Mertert port area. According to the Trier river police, the oily substance began to spread from the harbour basin directly into the Moselle riverbed. The pollution covered a significant section of the waterway, affecting Luxembourg and neighbouring areas of Germany.

According to reports from the volunteer fire brigade of the German municipality of Konz, the fuel slick spread downstream to the village of Oberbillig, covering a distance of more than two kilometres. As an emergency measure, the Mertert fire brigade installed floating barriers (booms) at the mouth of the port to prevent further pollutants from entering open water. At present, port operations have been completely suspended and the entrance to the port is closed to vessels.

The exact source of the leak and the causes of the incident have not yet been determined. There is also no official information about the amount of fuel that spilled into the river. Since the port of Mertert is under Luxembourg's jurisdiction, the Grand Duchy's police have taken charge of the operation and investigation of the circumstances of the case.

Specialists continue to monitor the state of the aquatic environment, while law enforcement agencies are trying to determine whether there was a technical malfunction on one of the vessels or at the port terminal. Nevertheless, the prompt intervention of cross-border services prevented the uncontrolled spread of the spill towards larger population centres.