A marine pollution response drill was successfully conducted today, Thursday, July 9, 2026, a preparedness exercise was successfully carried out at the port of Halki to respond to a marine pollution incident caused by a fuel spill, with the aim of assessing the level of operational readiness and coordination among all involved agencies.
The exercise was organized by the Municipal Port Fund of South Dodecanese, in collaboration with the company Environmental Protection Engineering S.A. (EPE), in accordance with the approved Marine Pollution Response Plan.
The scenario involved a spill of approximately 400 liters of diesel fuel from a vessel moored at the port of Chalki. During the exercise, all prescribed procedures were implemented, including immediate mobilization, notification of the competent authorities, deployment of floating and absorbent booms, containment of the spill, and safe cleanup of the area.
The exercise helped evaluating:
the effectiveness of communication procedures,
the response time of the agencies involved,
the proper use of pollution response equipment,
as well as the overall coordination of the operational forces.
The exercise involved officials from the Municipal Port Fund of South Dodecanese, the Chalki Port Station, Technical Environmental Protection S.A., fishermen from the island, as well as the Mayor of Halki, Mr. Evangelos Fragakis, who observed the progress of the exercise and helped coordinate the operations.
The Mayor of Chalki stated:
“Protecting the marine environment is a top priority for our municipality. Today’s exercise demonstrated that, through the cooperation of all relevant agencies, we can respond promptly and effectively to any potential incident. Prevention, education, and constant preparedness are the most important tools for safeguarding our island’s natural resources and safety.”
The Municipality of Chalki extends its warmest thanks to all those who participated in the exercise, reaffirming the importance of ongoing cooperation and operational readiness for the effective protection of the marine environment and the local community.