Sea of shame

lolo Williams recalls the catastrophic Sea Empress oil spill 30 years on

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Springwatch presenter lolo Williams will never forget the miles of blackened beaches, the stench of crude oil and the thousands of seabirds that were killed when an oil tanker ran aground off the Pembrokeshire coast 30 years ago.

The Sea Empress struck rocks near the entrance to the port of Milford Haven on 15 February 1996. Over the following days, it haemorrhaged 72,000 tonnes of oil, with wave after wave hitting the Pembrokeshire Coast National Park, home to seals, dolphins and seabird colonies.

CATASTROPHIC