Spain Deals With Oil Spill Near Island

Cleanup crews work in an attempt to mop up an oil spill near San Jose, in the Balearic island of Ibiza, Spain, Saturday July 14, 2007. The oil leaks began when merchant ship "Don Pedro" hit rocks and sank on Wednesday with 150 tons of fuel oil and 50 tons of gasoline on board. (AP Photo/EFE, Montserrat T. Diez) (Montserrat T. Diez - AP)

MADRID, Spain -- Fresh oil leaks from a recently sunken ship threatened Saturday to coat beaches and coves on the Mediterranean island of Ibiza, even as crews cleared tons already spilled in the area, officials said.

Divers detected the latest oil leaks from the merchant ship "Don Pedro" after failed attempts to seal cracks in the wreck, said Josep Lliteres, environment director general for Spain's Balearic Islands.

The ship had been sailing from Ibiza to the eastern port city of Valencia when it hit rocks and sank Wednesday with 150 tons of fuel oil and 50 tons of gasoline on board.

Divers had tried to seal a crack which by Thursday had created an oil slick 3.5 miles long and a half-mile wide, Development Minister Magdalena Alvarez said.

The government has decided to try and remove the oil remaining inside the sunken vessel, rescue service spokeswoman Pilar Tejo said.

Cleanup crews, meanwhile, tried to prevent an environmental problem on the island, one of Spain's Mediterranean beauty spots, as summer holidays begin. Some 30 tons of oil were cleared by Saturday.

Three Ibiza beaches _ Talamanca, Ses Figueretes and Platja de Bossa _ were closed while crews cleaned up the spill.