Oil spill near Anapa after Kerch Strait stormCEFR A2
27 Jul 2025
Adapted from Daria Dergacheva, Global Voices • CC BY 3.0
Photo by Polina Grishma, Unsplash
On the morning of 15 December 2024 a storm hit the Kerch Strait and damaged two fuel tankers. One broke in half and the other ran aground about 80 kilometres from the port of Taman. Reporters said about 3,700 tons of oil spilled from the ships.
The oil reached the sea near Anapa, a popular resort city. In mid‑June 2025 a team found the town quiet and many public places empty. Hotel bookings for June–July 2025 fell by 30–70 percent compared with the year before, and since late June guests have been asked to sign a form acknowledging a swimming ban.
Transport is harder because Anapa airport has been closed since March 2022, so people travel by train or via Sochi. A night train between Anapa and Adler, started in 2024, is now an important link.
Difficult words
- tanker — large ship that carries liquid fueltankers
- spill — to flow out of a ship or containerspilled
- run aground — to hit the sea bottom and stopran aground
- resort — a place people visit for holidays
- booking — a reservation to stay at a hotelbookings
- acknowledge — to accept or admit something is trueacknowledging
Tip: hover, focus or tap highlighted words in the article to see quick definitions while you read or listen.
Discussion questions
- Would you still visit Anapa after the oil spill? Why or why not?
- Which would you prefer: the night train between Anapa and Adler or travelling via Sochi? Why?
- If a place has a swimming ban, how would that change your holiday plans?
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