SEVASTOPOL, December 17. /TASS/. The fuel oil slick resulting from the tanker crash at the entrance to the Kerch Strait reportedly persists; scientists have collected samples on the Crimean side to assess the damage and will continue their work, Sergey Alemov, a research fellow at the Institute of Southern Seas Biology, told TASS.

On December 15, the Volgoneft-212 and Volgoneft-239 were wrecked during a storm while carrying approximately 9,000 tons of fuel oil. The Marine Hydrophysical Institute of the Russian Academy of Sciences, citing satellite monitoring data, reported a spill of about 3,000 tons of oil products. It also noted that the fuel oil slick, which poses a threat to the area's water and coastal ecosystems, is drifting northward, having entered the Kerch Strait and heading toward the coast of the Krasnodar Region.

Alemov reported that the agency's scientists traveled to the strait to collect samples and assess the damage to ecosystems.

"On December 16, they managed to collect samples from the Crimean side. They traveled to the Tuzla Spit (where the Crimean Bridge passes through - TASS) and took samples of water, bottom coastal sediments, and other substances. On December 17, they plan to visit the Kuban coast to collect samples from that side of the strait. There were no visible consequences, but we will see what the samples reveal. We worked at four sites and collected samples for several parameters at each station," Alemov said.

He added that earlier calculations indicate the slick is moving toward the Krasnodar shore of the strait, influenced by waves and wind.