“An oil spill in the Deurganckdock is causing significant disruption in the port of Antwerp,” the port of Antwerp-Bruges said in a statement on its website on Friday.

The port said that the source had been stopped, but that pollution had spread towards the Scheldt with civil protection and maritime and coastal services closely monitoring the “potential impact on riverbanks and surrounding nature areas.”

“The directly involved seagoing vessels have been contained for active clean-up operations,” said a port statement.

The Scheldt was fully closed to traffic between buoy 80 above Noordzeeterminal and the entrance to the Deurganck dock. The Zandvliet and Berendrecht locks were also closed due to the presence of oil slicks.

“We regret the impact of this incident on our port and the vulnerable nature areas along the Scheldt,” the port authority said.

“Protecting our environment is an absolute priority, and we are doing everything possible to minimise both operational and ecological damage.”

By early Friday afternoon the port said the Scheldt had “been reopened to shipping” but that Deurganck dock “remains closed until further notice.”

“Specialised vessels are actively engaged in cleaning up the oil. Our operational priority is to fully clear the Deurganck Dock, the Noordzee and Europaterminal, and the Berendrecht-Zandvliet lock complex,” said a port statement.

“We are making every effort to safely and swiftly resume operations at these key locations and to minimise and resolve disruptions,” Antwerp port added.

Belgium’s Antwerp port highlighted that the “focus is on preventing further spread and on targeted clean-up of vulnerable zones.”

For more updates on the oil spill in the Deurganckdock please see here.