Water activities can now resume safely in affected areas.
The National Environment Agency (NEA) announced on October 25, 2024, that the advisory against water activities in the waters off East Coast Park and the Southern Islands, including Kusu, St John’s, and Lazarus Islands, has been lifted. This follows the conclusion of the Shell oil leak, which was first reported on October 20, 2024.
The oil leak, originating from a pipeline operated by Shell across Pulau Bukom and Bukom Kechil, had discharged over 30 tonnes of “slop” (a mix of oil and water) into the sea. The leak, which began around 5:30 AM and was stopped by 3:00 PM the same day, prompted the NEA to issue a precautionary advisory, halting water activities in the affected areas.
Since then, no further oil sightings have been reported at sea or onshore. The advisory was removed after confirming that no oil had reached sensitive areas like Sentosa, Sisters’ Island Marine Park, or nearby desalination plants. Oil-absorbent booms were placed around coastlines to mitigate environmental impact, and authorities confirmed no adverse effects in these regions.
