The Government of Gibraltar hopes to be able to start extracting fuel from the bulk carrier OS35, which remains semi-sunken in the Bay of Algeciras (Cádiz), as it is “well contained” after the fracture detected in the hull as a result of its collision with another ship, while a diving team will carry out an external inspection and determine the extent of the rupture. According to the latest update released by the Gibraltar Contingency Council at 07.00 this Thursday, the situation of the OS35 ” has remained stable” overnight and additional monitoring by drones and thermal imaging from land “has revealed no significant changes in the situation.” According to the Government of Gibraltar, the salvage team remains on board the ship to continue evaluating and planning the way forward and the divers will be arriving shortly for an external inspection of the hull. Likewise, the Gibraltar Port Authority will continue during the morning with the deployment of equipment and preparations for subsequent operations while normal port operations continue to be suspended. The Gibraltar Contingency Council already pointed out late on Wednesday that “the indications suggest that it is likely that the ship did not break up as such, but rather that it sagged” and indicated as a “first concern” the discharge “as soon as possible” of the heavy fuel oil with low sulfur content on board, followed by the diesel and then lubricating oil. According to the Government of Gibraltar, the fuel on board “is well contained” and it is expected that the unloading can begin this Thursday morning. The Executive chaired by Picardo defends that “there has been no way to remove the fuel from the ship before so that it would not be a risk to the environment” and stresses that “if such an option had existed with the resources available in the area, it would have been taken”. In his opinion, the current plans to remove the oil represent the “best possible option” to carry out this task “cleanly and that does not pose a risk of lasting environmental damage” to the Bay of Algeciras. The Government of Gibraltar explains that “the barrier placed on the port side of the ship is being separated from the hull to prevent any possible leakage of oil to the outside” and reports the deployment of a new “J-shaped inflatable barrier to collect oil” that could leak overnight, to which will be added three other barriers ready to be deployed this Thursday and another foam-filled barrier that will be placed to protect the beach. e chaired by Picardo informs of the acquisition in the United Kingdom of additional equipment for protection against oil spills that “is expected to arrive in Gibraltar this Sunday” and defends that its Department of the Environment “has qualified personnel in the response to oil spills oil to manage any response”, as well as that “an environmental sensitivity map” is being prepared to determine the best location of the preventive barriers along the coast of the Bay of Algeciras. Lastly, the Government of Gibraltar assures that the new rupture registered in the afternoon this Wednesday makes “likely that the salvage of the OS35 hull now requires a longer-term plan” that “extends beyond the previous expectation of a few weeks”, since the refloating of the ship by installing a cofferdam “may no longer be a viable salvage option”. In any case, he points out that no further details can be determined until a diving team can inspect the damage.