Mysterious Oil Spill Damaging Egypt's 'Riviera' Red Sea Coast

With much attention focused on the spewing oil leak in the Gulf of Mexico, it appears that there is another mysterious oil spill in the Red Sea that has contaminated over 60 miles of the pristine Egyptian coast.

After keeping quiet for days, possibly in a bid to avoid scaring away tourists, Egyptian officials have finally confirmed the leak but said crews had already cleaned up 90 percent of the oil.

Reports said it came from an offshore rig and officials were trying to cover up the spill, which is threatening the Hurghada resort coast and the famous coral reefs which make up Egypt’s ‘Riviera’.

For the past week no one has taken responsibility for the spill. Egypt’s Oil Ministry said it could have leaked from an offshore rig, spilled from a passing tanker, or naturally escaped from the sea bed.

According to AP, environmental activists said that the spill is continuing, leaving turtles and sea birds covered in oil. While it pales in comparison to the disaster in the Gulf of Mexico, Egyptian officials are now considering reducing some of the 180 rigs in the Gulf of Suez to be able to monitor those that remain more effectively.