SIMFEROPOL, January 9. /TASS/. In the past day, more than 25 kilometers of the Crimean shoreline have been cleaned from oil waste washed ashore following last year’s sinking of two tankers in the Kerch Strait, the Crimean government’s press service said.

"Coastal zones, where new areas of oil pollution had been detected, were cleaned up in Crimea. According to the emergencies ministry’s report, over 25 kilometers of the shoreline have been cleared, with 946 sacks of waste collected and 18.88 metric tons of polluted sand and soil taken out for disposal," the authority said.

Over 900 people and 126 pieces of equipment have taken part in the effort.

A total of 136 kilometers of the coastline have been cleaned up since the start of the effort, with about 322.14 tons of oil waste collected and disposed of.

On December 15, the Volgoneft-212 and Volgoneft-239 tankers sank in the Kerch Strait area in the Black Sea amid a storm. One sailor died, and the rest were evacuated. According to emergency services, the tankers were carrying about 9,200 tons of fuel oil. An oil spill occurred in the Black Sea as a result of the accident, and clean-up operations are underway. According to the Russian Ministry of Transport, about 2,400 tons of oil products have leaked into the Black Sea, which is much less than the initial estimates.