Largest Tanker Spills Worldwide

 

Rank

Location

 Year

Ship

 Spill (tonnes)

Apparent Cause
1 32 km NE of Trinidad & Tobago 1979 Atlantic Empress 287,000 Collision
2 1,287 km off Angola 1991 ABT Summer 260,000 Explosion due to leak from cargo tank
3 64 km off Table Bay, South Africa 1983 Castillo de Beliver 252,000 Fire in ballast tank due to leak from cargo tank
4 off Portsall, Brittany, France 1978 Amoco Cadiz 223,000 Fire following steering failure
5 in the port of Genoa, Italy 1981 Haven 144.000 Fire in ballast tank due to leak from cargo tank
6 1,175 km NE of St. John's, Newfoundland 1988 Odyssey 132,000 Fire following structural failure
7 off Land's End, England 1967 Torrey Canyon 119,000 Grounded following navigation error
8 in the Gulf of Oman 1972 Sea Star 115,000 Collision
9 in the North Sea, off Belgium 1971 Texaco Denmark 105,000 Not known
10 in Navarino Bay, Greece 1980 Irenes Serenade 100,000 Fire lowering anchor due to cargo in fore peak
11 in La Coruna harbor, Spain 1976 Urquiola 100,000 Grounded on uncharted rock
12 593 km W of Kauai, Hawaii 1977 Hawaiian Patriot 95,000 Fire following hull crack
13 in the Bosporus, near Istanbul, Turkey 1979 Independentza 95,000 Collision
14 off Ponta Delgada, Azores 1969 Julius Schindler 95,000 Not known
15 in Porto de Leisoes, Portugal 1975 Jakob Maersk 88,000 Not known
16 off Garth Ness in the Shetlands, Scotland 1993 Braer 85,000 Lost power
17 185 km off Morocco 1989 Khark 5 80,000 Explosion following ballast tank leak
18 in La Coruna harbor, Spain 1992 Aegean Sea 74,000 Grounded following loss of steering
19 near entrance to Milford Haven, Wales 1996 Sea Empress 72,000 Pilot misjudged tide
20 180 km E of Durban, South Africa 1992 Katina P. 72,000 Hull failure
21 140 km S of Kharg Island, Iran 1985 Nova 70,000 Not known
22 in the Atlantic, off South Africa 1971 Wafra 67,000 Engine room flooded
23 off the northern Spanish coast 2002 Prestige 63,000 Hull failure
24 in Tralhavet Bay, Sweden 1970 Othello 60,000 Collision
25 111 km NW of Puerto Rico 1975 Epic Colocotronis 60,000 Not known
26 off Brazil 1960 Sinclair Petrolore 59,000 Exploded, reason unknown
27 93 km from Muscat, Oman 1983 Assimi 53,000 Fire in engine room
28 off Honshu Island, Japan 1974 Yuyo Maru No. 10 53,000 Collision
29 off Hokkaido Island, Japan 1965 Heimvard 49,000 Not known
30 off Cape Villano, Spain 1978 Andros Patria 49,000 Explosion following hull crack
31 105 km E of Durban, South Africa 1968 World Glory 47,000 Broke in two in gale
32 333 km W of Iwo Jima, Japan 1975 British Ambassador 47,000 Engine room flooded
33 30 km NE of Doha, Qatar 1983 Pericles GC 46,000 Engine room fire
34 in the Straits of Magellan, off Chile 1974 Metula 46,000 Not known
35 in the Indian Ocean, off Seychelles 1970 Ennerdale 46,000 Grounded on uncharted rock
36 in the Strait of Malacca, near Dumai, Indonesia 1978 Tadotsu 43,000 Not known
37 off the Columbia River, near Warrenton, Oregon 1968 Mandoil 42,000 Collision
38 in the SE Pacific, off Chile 1973 Napier 38,000 Not known
39 11 km off Dubai, U.A.E. 1979 Patianna 37,000 Not known
40 off the E coast of Greece 1972 Trader 37,000 Not known
41 in Prince William Sound, Alaska 1989 Exxon Valdez 37,000 Grounded, following navigation error
42 in Arzew harbor, Algeria 1980 Juan Antonio Lavalleja 37,000 Unmoored while loading
43 700 km off Hong Kong 1994 Thanassis A. 36,000 Broke in two in typhoon
44 5 km off the entrance to Galveston Bay, Texas 1979 Burmah Agate 36,000 Collision
45 563 km SE of Cape Race, Newfoundland 1988 Athenian Venture 35,000 Fire, broke in two
46 3 km N of Chilung, China 1977 Mega Borg 35,000 Explosion in pump room while lightering
47 56 km W of Punta Manglares, Colombia 1976 St. Peter 34,000 Fire in engine room
48 64 km off Ile d'Ouessant, Brittany, France 1979 Gino 34,000 Collision