On July 13, a 20,000-ton cargo ship ‘Chang Rong Men’ collided and sank the other cargo ship ‘Zhongheng 9’ in the Yangtze River, thereby forcing the closure of the dam of Shanghai’s main reservoir in order to avoid contamination.
Shanghai’s two major tap water sources, the Qingcaosha and Chenhang reservoirs, have stopped taking water from the Yangtze River where two cargo ships collided, the Shanghai Water Authority said yesterday.
The Zhongheng 9, which was carrying over 10,000 tons of steel beams around 1 a.m. on Wednesday on the river section near Changshu City in neighboring Jiangsu Province. Zhongheng sank immediately after the collision but no one was injured.
All 15-crew members were rescued by Changshu’s rescue teams. Changshu authorities also dispatched ships to clean up the oil.
However, the tap water supplies were not affected because the Qingcaosha Reservoir contains enough water to supply the city for 68 days, while Chenhang Reservoir can supply for 10 days.
The dams of both reservoirs have been closed until the oil contamination is fully cleared, the Shanghai Chengtou Group, the water supplier said.
The accident happened about 36 kilometers away from the Chenhang and 51 kilometers from the Qingcaosha. The contaminated water made its way into the city early yesterday.
The Shanghai Water Authority immediately enhanced monitoring of the water quality along the river sections near both reservoirs.
Oil absorbent sheets and ropes were placed around to protect the reservoirs, officials said.
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Source: Shanghai Daily
