MUSCAT — Rescue and containment crews working to stop oil from spreading around the Hallaniyat Islands in Oman's Dhofar Governorate are being held back by monsoon-season weather that has made the wreck site nearly unreachable by sea or air, Oman's Ministry of Transport, Communications and Information Technology said.
The tanker Caroline Bezengi ran aground on a rocky reef close to Al Qibliyah Island. The vessel now sits at a list of roughly 17 degrees, with water flooding a large section of one side. Oil and seawater pooling on deck, combined with sustained high winds and waves, have made portions of the ship too dangerous for workers to operate safely.
Mohammed bin Abdullah Al Rawahi, director general of maritime affairs at the ministry, said the response team had stepped up its efforts from the moment the vessel grounded, with the goal of limiting environmental damage to the surrounding waters. The Khareef season—the summer monsoon that brings heavy weather to Dhofar each year—has imposed what Al Rawahi described as exceptional operational challenges on every aspect of the response.
Wind speeds at the site have reached around 40 knots at times, and wave heights have climbed to about four metres. Those conditions have prevented support vessels from getting close enough to the tanker to begin cargo-transfer operations or other heavy salvage work. Helicopter access has been equally constrained.
The sea floor around the grounding site adds a further complication. The area is shallow and rocky, and detailed hydrographic data on safe approach depths and routes is limited. That gap in navigational information increases the risk to any support vessel attempting to work alongside the stricken tanker, and the ministry said it is now exploring alternative means of reaching the ship and supplying the teams already aboard.
The Caroline Bezengi also has no reliable power source. Without an operational power supply, crews cannot run the equipment needed to pump cargo, control flooding or support broader salvage efforts. The ministry said heavy work cannot begin until minimum safety standards on board are met and working areas are secured.
The response draws on national and international expertise. British maritime security firm Ambrey is advising the operation alongside ministry teams. International Oil Pollution Response—known as OSRL—has been brought in for spill-response work, and Oman-based company BISCO is supporting cleanup of affected coastal and marine areas.
The ministry has sourced and pre-positioned a range of pollution-control materials: rubber containment booms designed to encircle and contain surface oil, chemical dispersants that break oil into smaller droplets to reduce surface spread, and additional spill-response equipment. A dedicated specialist vessel has been arranged to carry this equipment to the accident site and operate it once conditions allow deployment.
Al Rawahi said the equipment and materials will go into the water as soon as weather and sea state improve to the point where safe operations are possible, and only after approved environmental and technical assessments have cleared each step. Those assessments are being coordinated with Ambrey and the other international specialists on scene.
Oman's Environment Authority is running a parallel operation alongside the transport ministry, framing the response as an integrated national effort that combines spill remediation, vessel stabilisation and continuous environmental monitoring. The authority said its objectives are protecting the marine ecosystem around the Hallaniyat Islands, containing pollution and ensuring that shipping navigation in the area remains safe.
The Hallaniyat Islands—a protected archipelago off the southern coast of Oman—sit within waters that support coral reefs, fish stocks and marine wildlife. The expanding spill has drawn regional attention, with observers noting that the monsoon conditions blocking cleanup efforts also drive currents that can push oil toward sensitive coastal and reef systems faster than calm-season spills would travel.
Satellite imagery taken on Aug. 5 showed the Caroline Bezengi partially submerged at the grounding site. The size of the spill has continued to grow since then, response teams confirmed, though the ministry has not published a figure for the total volume of oil released.
