THE Sea Empress oil spill was one of the worst environmental disasters ever to hit UK shores and 20 years on RSPCA staff are looking back at the role they played in helping to save thousands of seabirds.

Early in the evening of February 15, 1996 the single hull oil tanker hit rocks on its way into the Cleddau Estuary and its cargo of 130,000 tonnes of crude oil started to spill into the waters off Pembrokeshire.

The RSPCA launched a massive rescue operation in an effort to save as many oiled and dying seabirds as possible that were so badly affected by the slick.

Volunteers helped open and run a makeshift animal hospital where more than 7,000 dead or oiled birds were taken - while inspectors, drivers and wildlife centre staff experts worked around the clock to nurse, clean and feed the birds back to health.

“The rescue operation took a massive team effort,” said RSPCA chief inspector Romain de Kerckhove, who held the same position 20 years ago.

“It quickly became apparent that this incident was of a scale that needed national resources, and a roster was arranged that invited colleagues from all over England and Wales to become involved.

“Officers would attend, for a limited period, and would work extremely long days, responding to calls from the public, and patrolling beaches to search for victims of the disaster.

“They were accommodated locally, and would be replaced by other colleagues in order to keep the team fresh and strong. Some officers would actually sleep on camp beds at the temporary bird rescue holding/cleaning facility, in order to ensure that there were people on site overseeing the welfare of the birds 24/7.

“It was hard work, but everyone enjoyed the atmosphere and being involved in such a worthwhile and much needed rescue operation.”

Dermot Murphy was one of the convoy of ambulance drivers drafted in to help ship stricken birds to the makeshift hospital.

“I had never seen anything like it,” he said.

“So many birds covered in oil in a terrible state, they were still being washed up two weeks into the operation. The birds that stuck in my mind were the common scoter, which is a sea duck. There were so many of them, an incredible amount and in such a bad way too.

“We had a busy week and did a range of duties, from collecting food to feed staff, patrolling beaches looking for oiled birds and cutting up food to feed the birds. It was a massive cleaning operation.”