Spills
Madeiran archipelago, portugal
Aragon; Madeiran Archipelago, Portugal · NOAAORR-6739
- issued
- 1989-12-29 00:00Z
- status
- cancelled 1990-01-12 00:00Z
- self-cancels
- 1990-01-12 00:00Z
- authority
- NOAA OR&R
- sea
- North Atlantic Ocean
- position
- 33.567, -15.567
- vessel
- TANKER OWNERS POLLUTION FEDERATION · 12 messages
- source
- incidentnews · first seen 2026-09-03 15:09Z
Original warning text
Aragon; Madeiran Archipelago, Portugal. Madeiran Archipelago, Portugal. 1. While under tow, the Spanish tank vessel Aragon suffered damage during a storm on December 29, 1989, approximately 360 miles off the coast of Morocco. The damage resulted in the release of approximately 175,000 barrels of Mexican Maya Crude Oil into the Atlantic Ocean, near the Madeiran archipelago. The Portuguese Navy was in charge of the response. They monitored the initial movement of the oil until it made landfall. Approximately three weeks after the spill, pollution occurred on the Portuguese Island of Porto Santo, with oil believed to have been from the Aragon. This was later confirmed when oil samples were taken from the vessel. Portuguese authorities requested assistance from the International Tanker Owners Pollution Federation (ITOPF) and the European Economic Community (EEC) Task Force. Specialists from the ITOPF and EEC Task Force recommended bringing additional equipment to [...] 2. COMMODITY: MEXICAN MAYA CRUDE OIL. MAXIMUM POTENTIAL RELEASE: 7350000 GALLONS. 3. POSITION 33.567N 015.567W. NOAA INCIDENTNEWS 6739: https://incidentnews.noaa.gov/incident/6739
This area · spills & pollution incidents
1 within 180 nm since 1989 · 0 in the last 12 months · 0 in force now
Season · when spills & pollution incidents happen here
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month of issue, all years in the archive
Nearby now · within 120 nm
Nothing else in force within 120 nm.
Worldwide now
8 spills & pollution incidents in force · see all
Spills
Oil and chemical spills, groundings and vessel casualties with a pollution threat: NOAA IncidentNews responses since 1957, and spill-response areas broadcast as navigational warnings. All current spills & pollution incidents →
Not for navigation. This is a re-rendering of an official navigational warning for awareness; mariners must use official NAVAREA broadcasts and their national MSI service.