City of Labin Police filed charges on Wednesday against three Syrian nationals – the ship captain, chief engineer and his deputy – for causing an incident in the Raska Bay in Istria on Friday, in which fuel leaked from the cargo ship Fidelity into the sea.

Considering that the damage caused will not be reversed for quite some time, this was a serious environmental crime, the Istrian police said on Wednesday.

Investigation showed that the 39-year-old captain of the Fidelity cargo ship, the 32-year-old chief engineer, and his 33-year-old deputy failed to oversee and implement the proper protection and safety measures during the refuelling of the ship in the Brsica port from 10.45 pm on June 21 to 8 pm on June 22.

“They are charged with failing to establish a communication channel between the ship and the supply truck, failing to raise the BRAVO flag during the operation and keeping the scuppers open. All this led to some 3,800 litres of fuel leaking from the left reservoir onto the deck and, from the deck, into the sea,” the police said.

The BRAVO maritime flag is used to signal that the ship is taking in, discharging, or carrying dangerous goods.

Large sea and coastal areas were polluted in the town of Trget and the east and west sides of the Raska Bay in the Barban and Marcana municipalities, the police added.

The state prosecutor in the city of Pula in Istria questioned the suspects and set cautionary measures – they are all banned from leaving their current place of residence, their travel documents were temporarily seized, and they were ordered to regularly report with the law enforcement authorities.

Another Syrian national will be questioned during the day, as well as three Croatian nationals who are also suspected of causing pollution to the environment.

Deputy Maritime Minister Sinisa Orlic, who visited the area yesterday, said that the cleanup operation should last for about 10 more days.

Follow N1 via mobile apps for Android | iPhone/iPad | Windows| and social media on Twitter | Facebook.