Legacy of 1992 Slick Still Blights Fishermen

Antonio Ribeira needed no reminding yesterday about what a sunken oil tanker can do to the livelihood of a fishing port.

Ten years after the Aegean Sea tanker hit the cliffs at the mouth of La Coruna port, he and his fellow fishermen in the nearby port of Sada are still waiting for the ship's insurance company to finish paying up.

An out-of-court settlement was reached earlier this year - but final payments to some 4,000 people are not due until January.

The Spanish government and the insurers had given the fishermen part of their compensation claims before a final settlement could be reached. However, fixing final quantities was delayed for a decade - partly because the ship's captain had skipped bail and not returned to Spain.

"We calculated the damage to the fishing industry at around £20m," said Mr Ribeira, the head of Sada's fisherman's guild and the owner of a trawler which employs 10 men.

"We had to stop fishing for three months, but for the next two or three years there were far fewer fish.

"The mussels being cultivated in the loch all had to be thrown away, and it took several years to get back to normal."

The Aegean Sea smashed into the rocks at the foot of La Coruna's ancient lighthouse, the Tower of Hercules, in rough seas in December 1992. The tanker burst into flames, and between 20,000 and 30,000 tonnes of fuel were spilt.

All around the great three-fingered sea loch that stretches from La Coruna via Pontedeume and Sada to Ferrol, the sinking of the Prestige 130 miles off the coast on Tuesday has brought back the nightmares of 1992.

"When I see what is happening to our fellow fishermen on the 'Coast of Death', my heart goes out to them," said Jesus Pineiro, the secretary of the fisherman's guild in Pontedeume.

When the Aegean Sea went down, his guild boasted 160 members, mainly dedicated to digging up clams and scallops from the seabed. Now there are only 60 left.

"We still had fishermen coming in this year saying that pools of oil on the seabed have ruined their nets," he said.

"I would say that, on the ecological level, we are only just recovering now."