20 Jun, 2019 @ 11:43
1 min read

‘WE’RE BEING POISONED’: Video of ship billowing black fumes ‘onto people’s homes’ outrages Gibraltar residents

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THIS is the moment huge clouds of toxic black smoke billowed from a ship in the waters of Gibraltar yesterday. 

The 30-second clip shows a huge vessel emit the toxic fumes not far from blocks of flats and homes.

The video has sparked outrage online, with locals labelling the pollution a ‘disgrace’.

The woman who recorded the video told the Olive Press: “Residents are getting fed up with this issue.

“The air quality is suffering which in turn affects people’s health but the Government of Gibraltar appear to do nothing about it.

“They have declared a climate emergency but still allow this practice day in and day out.”

A local commented on her video: “I watched it happen in real-time…all the smoke went to the flats at Admiral’s Place.

“Shame on the Government that allows this.”

Another blasted: “Nothing is ever done here in Gib we are slowly being poisoned.”

One complained that the Rock is being turned into a ‘concrete jungle’ thanks to all the construction and pollution.

“By Queensway the roads are black and the leaves on the plants are white from all the dust,” she wrote, “What a pity, Gibraltar could be such a lovely place and it’s becoming a contaminated concrete jungle.”

A government spokesperson told the Olive Press today: “Gibraltar Port Authority VTS operations yesterday spotted a vessel anchored in the western anchorage emitting considerable dense smoke from its funnel.

“VTS immediately contacted the vessel and ordered this to be stopped and warned that the vessel would be ordered to leave BGTW if there was any further repetition.

“This action from VTS took place prior to receiving any complaints from the general public.

“The vessel was continuously monitored during the remainder of its stay in BGTW, including throughout the night by means of the thermal imaging cameras operated by the Port Authority.

“No repetition of this issue was observed and the vessel subsequently departed early this morning.

“The vessel in question is not a banned vessel, and as is the case with all vessels calling at Gibraltar there is a process for the clearance of the vessel prior to its arrival.”

Laurence Dollimore

Laurence Dollimore is a Spanish-speaking, NCTJ-trained journalist with almost a decade’s worth of experience.
The London native has a BA in International Relations from the University of Leeds and and an MA in the same subject from Queen Mary University London.
He earned his gold star diploma in multimedia journalism at the prestigious News Associates in London in 2016, before immediately joining the Olive Press at their offices on the Costa del Sol.
After a five-year stint, Laurence returned to the UK to work as a senior reporter at the Mail Online, where he remained for two years before coming back to the Olive Press as Digital Editor in 2023.
He continues to work for the biggest newspapers in the UK, who hire him to investigate and report on stories in Spain.
These include the Daily Mail, Telegraph, Mail Online, Mail on Sunday and The Sun and Sun Online.
He has broken world exclusives on everything from the Madeleine McCann case to the anti-tourism movement in Tenerife.

GOT A STORY? Contact newsdesk@theolivepress.es or call +34 951 273 575 Twitter: @olivepress

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