South Korea faces 'sea of oil'

MALLIPO BEACH, South Korea (AP) -- South Korea's government was preparing to declare a coastal zone hit by the nation's worst ever oil spill a "special disaster area," Yonhap news agency reported Monday, setting the stage for direct aid to the battered region.

Yonhap cited Government Administration and Home Affairs Minister Park Myung-jae for the information. The agency handling the issue said a damage estimate was still to be made.

The report came as the Taean region has been struggling since Saturday to remove oil from a scenic beach on South Korea's western coast.

Thousands of people used shovels and buckets in a massive operation to clean up South Korea's largest oil spill, which blackened beaches along the country's western coast.

About 7,500 volunteers, local residents, civil servants and members of the coast guard, police and military scooped up oil that began washing ashore at Mallipo beach Saturday from a damaged supertanker, the Coast Guard said.

Still more worked aboard 105 ships along South Korea's western coast trying to clean the sea.

Prime Minister Han Duck-soo instructed officials to help affected fish and seafood farmers receive quick compensation, his office said, without providing details.

The Coast Guard said late Sunday that 565 tons of oil had been collected, which would amount to about 5 percent of the total spilled. Watch as the thick oil spill covers the coastline »

Tides of darkened sea water started crashing ashore Saturday at Mallipo, one of South Korea's best-known beaches 95 miles southwest of Seoul. Seagulls turned black and fish farms were threatened along the coast.

The spill occurred Friday when a Hong Kong-registered supertanker was slammed by a South Korean-owned barge that came unmoored from its tugboat in rough seas about seven miles off Mallipo.

The Coast Guard said the last of three leaks in Hebei Spirit tanker had been plugged Sunday and the extent of affected coastline remained stable at 11 miles.

A total of 66,000 barrels -- 2.7 million gallons -- of crude oil gushed into the ocean, more than twice as much as in South Korea's previous worst spill in 1995.

Kim Sun-seon, who works for an ocean cleanup business on South Korea's southeast coast, wore rubber gloves and a mask to help cope with the strong smell.

"We don't know when we can finish this work," she said. "We have been shoveling oil since yesterday, but the waves just keep bringing more oil. I feel dizzy."

At sea, Coast Guard personnel used a special oil fence to try to keep more crude from coming ashore. Mats to absorb oil were placed on the beach. Learn about other ways that oil is cleaned up after a spill

Mallipo is an important stopover for migrating birds such as snipe, mallards and great crested grebes, and has an abundant fishing industry.

Choi Kyung-hwan, a fisherman who came to help with the cleanup, despaired for the area where he has lived for 30 years. He said the oil had sickened his wife, and he was struggling with dizziness.

"Mallipo is finished," he said.

The affected area includes 181 aquatic farms producing abalone, seaweed, littleneck clams and sea cucumbers, said Lee Seung-yop, an official with the government of Taean County, where the beach is located.

The area of 63,800 people has about 4,000 aquatic farmers, he said.

"A lot of damage is feared to these farms, although we don't have an estimate yet," Lee said.

Restaurant owners feared for their livelihoods in an area visited by more than 20 million tourists last year.

"I haven't had any customers since news of the oil spill Friday," said Lee Ok-hwa, who had previously served 200 people a day in her raw fish restaurant.

"I don't know how to make a living," she said. "I don't know how to pay the rent. I believe this situation will last for at least one year."

The central government has designated the oil spill a "disaster," which makes it easier for regional governments to mobilize personnel, equipment and material to cope with the situation. Despite pleas to do so, however, it stopped short of declaring the region a "disaster area" -- which would make residents eligible for government financial aid.

Lee Myung-bak, considered the front-runner in South Korea's December 19 presidential election, shoveled oil into a bucket at Mallipo beach, wearing rubber boots and a blue safety suit. Rival candidate Chung Dong-young also joined the cleanup.

The Coast Guard said it was unclear how long the cleanup operation would last.

The tanker had been at anchor and carrying about 260,000 tons -- about 1.8 million barrels -- of crude oil to be loaded into boats from a nearby port. Neither the tanker nor barge was in danger of sinking, and no casualties were reported in the collision.

The size of the spill reported by the authorities would be about one-fourth that of the 260,000 barrels, or 11 million gallons, spilled into Alaska's Prince William Sound by the Exxon Valdez in 1989.

The spill was also smaller than one in Pakistan in 2003 when a Greek-registered ship ran aground near Karachi, leaking some 8.2 million gallons of crude that polluted the city's main beaches. E-mail to a friend

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