Kirki (tanker)

The Kirki was a 210 metre long Greek-registered oil tanker which caught fire on 21 July 1991, 30 km west of the fishing town of Cervantes, Western Australia.[1] The fire resulted in the ship's bow tearing off, rupturing the forward storage tanks and causing an oil spill initially estimated at 2.9 million gallons.[2] At the time it was the worst oil spill to have occurred in Australian waters. The vessel remained afloat and traveled north to the waters off Cape Preston where oil remaining in the vessel was to be recovered.[3]

The incident was the subject of the famous Clarke & Dawe sketch, The Front Fell Off.[4]

References

  1. ↑ "Kirki, Western Australia, 21 July 1991". Australian Maritime Safety Authority. Australian Government. Retrieved 21 April 2016.
  2. ↑ "Burning Tanker Spills Oil in Waters off Perth". The New York Times. 1991-07-22. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2016-04-21.
  3. ↑ "Kirki oil transfer near completion". The Canberra Times. 16 Aug 1991. Retrieved 2016-04-21 – via Trove.
  4. ↑ Clarke and Dawe. "The Front Fell Off". YouTube. Retrieved 25 June 2018.
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